2-7.  1% 


^  PRINCETON,  N.  J.  <^ 


Presented  b7TVo-^.^.~T=?.  <S x-Arr^  c7\n  ^DZD. 
BX  8  .F52 

Firth,   Franklin  Jones,  18A2- 
Christian  unity  in  effort 


i- 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2015 


https://archive.org/details/christianunityinOOfirt_0 


CHRISTIAN  UNITY  IN  EFFORT 


N  '.'7  1912 


Cljristtatt  Mnitv 
in  effort 

SOMETHING  ABOUT  THE  RELIGIOUS 

FAITHS,  CREEDS  AND  DEEDS 

OF  PEOPLE  OF  THE  UNITED  STATES  AND 
ELSEWHERE  IN  THEIR  RELATION  TO 
CHRISTIAN  UNITY  IN  EFFORT 


BT  y 

FRANK  J.  FIRTH 


PHILADELPHIA   &  LONDON 

%  15.  Lippincott  Company 

1910 


COFTBIOHT,  1910,  BT  FRANK  J.  FiBTH 


Printed  by  J.  B.  LippincoU  Company 
The  Washington  Square  Press,  Philadelphia,  U.  S.  A. 


this  book  is  dedicated  to  those  who, 
having  found  god  in  nature,  sin- 
cerely seek  to  know  the  truth  about 
him  and  his  will,  a3  it  exists  in  our 
Holy  Bible,  and  strive  earnestly  to 
conform  their  daily  lives  to  the  faith 
they  profess. 


EXPLANATORY 

This  book  records  some  personal  thoughts 
and  beliefs,  resulting  from  such  reading  and 
listening  to  the  views  of  others  as  is  prac- 
tically possible  in  and  following  the  well- 
occupied  hours  of  an  active  business  life.  It 
includes  quotations  from  the  Bible,  and  from 
other  books  that  have  been  interesting  and 
helpful.  The  repetitions  that  appear  here 
and  there  throughout  the  book  should  aid  in 
making  its  purpose  clearer. 

It  represents  a  conviction  that  every  man 
and  woman  should  acquire  by  individual 
effort  such  simple  religious  knowledge  and 
personal  faith  as  is  essential  to  a  well- 
rounded  life  here  and  to  a  right  preparation 
for  what  may  be  beyond ;  and  that  intelligent 
individual  observation  and  thought  will  make 
plain  the  need  for  organized  '  *  Christian  unity 
in  effort." 

In  this  age  of  religious  unrest  and  craving 
for  better  things  no  one  should  hold  in  selfish 
privacy  any  thought  or  experience  that,  if 
made  public,  might  in  any  way  be  helpful  to 
another. 

•  7 


If  what  is  here  written  shall  help  one  ear- 
nest and  sincere  seeker  after  truth  to  rise 
from  an  earthly  atmosphere  of  indifference, 
dependence  or  doubt  into  a  higher  and  purer 
life  of  intelligent  faith,  this  book  will  have 
justified  its  existence. 

Frank  J.  Firth 


Gekmantown 
Philadelphia,  Penna. 
October  1, 1909 


REMEMBER 


We  will  do  well  if  we  remember  that  in  matters 
religious,  as  in  all  else,  it  is  possible  for  people  to 
differ  from  us  in  opinion  and  still  be  right. 

Benjamin  Franklin  said  that  those  who  imagine 
they  alone  possess  all  religious  truth  are  like  a  man 
traveling  in  foggy  weather :  those  at  some  distance 
before  him  on  the  road  he  sees  wrapped  up  in  the 
fog,  as  well  as  those  behind  him,  and  also  the  people 
in  the  fields  on  each  side,  but  near  him  aU  appears 
clear,  though  in  truth  he  is  as  much  in  the  fog  as 
any  of  them. 


The  theory  of  the  arrangement  of  the  contents 
of  this  book  is  that  faith  must  be  an  individual 
experience.  It  must  be  realized  to  be  a  personal 
possession  of  inestimable  value  before  it  can  find  a 
right  expression  in  words.  When  experienced  and 
given  expression,  faith  should  influence  every  indi- 
vidual and  co-operative  action.  "Christian  unity 
in  effort ' '  should  result.  So  we  have  in  their  natural 
order,  faiths,  creeds,  deeds,  to  which  there  is  added 
a  brief  preliminary  and  a  reflective  conclusion. 


CONTENTS 


Preliminary   7 

PART  I.  Faith— The  Foundation 

Chapter  I  What  it  is  and  how  acquired   17 

Chapter  II  The  Christian  Religion   25 

Chapter  III  The  Old  Testament  Scriptures   39 

Chapter  IV  Some  Bible  Impressions   55 

Chapter  V  Some  Aids  to  Faith   66 

PART  II.  Creeds — Faith  in  Words 

Chapter  VI  Creeds   89 

Chapter  VII  The  Jewish  Faith   93 

Chapter  VIII  Christian  Faith   112 

Chapter  IX  Some  Other  Faiths  and  Facts   131 

PART  III.  Deeds — Faith  in  Action 

Chapter  X       Christian  Unity  in  Effort   151 

Chapter  XI  Church  History  and  Government  . .  172 
Chapter  XII     Organized  Methods   236 

Reflective 

Chapter  XIII   After  Death— What  Then  ?   265 


THE  LAW  OF  RELIGIOUS 
DEVELOPMENT 


THE  OLD  TEACHING  (As  summarized  by  Solomon) 
FEAR 

Let  us  hear  the  conclusion  of  the  whole  matter:  Fear 
God,  and  keep  his  commandments:  for  this  is  the  whole  duty 
of  man.  For  God  shall  bring  every  work  into  judgment, 
with  every  secret  thing,  whether  it  be  good,  or  whether  it  be 
evil  (Eccles.  12  : 13, 14). 

THE  NEW  TEACHING 

LOVE — CHARITY 

Jesus  said  unto  him, 
Thou  shalt  love  the  Lord  thy  God  with  all  thy  heart,  and 
with  all  thy  soul,  and  with  all  thy  mind.  This  is  the  first  and 
great  commandment.  And  the  second  is  Uke  unto  it.  Thou 
shalt  love  thy  neighbour  as  thyself.  On  these  two  command- 
ments hang  all  the  law  and  the  prophets  (Matt.  22  :  37-40). 
Do  you  ask  what  is  this  love  ? 

Jesus  said, 

Therefore  all  things  whatsoever  ye  would  that  men  should 
do  to  you,  do  ye  even  so  to  them :  for  this  is  the  law  and  the 
prophets  (Matt.  7  :  12). 

Do  you  ask,  as  did  the  lawyer  of  old, 

And  who  is  my  neighbour  ? 

Jesus  answered  him  in  a  parable  and  asked  at  its  close: 
Which  now  of  these  three,  thinkest  thou,  was  neighbour 
imto  him  that  fell  among  the  thieves  7 

And  the  lawyer  answered, 
He  that  shewed  mercy  on  him. 

Then  said  Jesus  unto  him, 
Go,  and  do  thou  likewise  (Luke  10  :  29-37), 


PART  I 
FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 


r 

CHAPTER  I 

WHAT  IT  IS  AND  HOW  ACQUIRED 

The  simple,  fundamental  faith  of  the  Chris- 
tian is  comprehended  in  a  belief  in  God  and 
the  Bible.  Whenever  the  Bible  is  herein  re- 
ferred to,  it  is  the  English  Bible,  Authorized 
Version,  that  is  meant.  Not  a  Bible  in  the 
Hebrew,  Greek  or  Latin,  with  which  lan- 
guages but  a  small  percentage  of  the  citizens 
of  the  United  States  are  at  all  familiar  (and 
in  which  a  still  smaller  percentage  are  able  to 
think),  but  a  Bible  in  our  own  English  lan- 
guage. We  may  safely  assume  that  the  care- 
ful translators  and  revisers  of  our  Bible  have 
succeeded  in  finding  language  which  clearly 
expresses  all  it  contains  that  is  essential  to 
salvation.  It  is  not  necessary  to  be  a  linguist 
or  a  scholar  to  be  an  intelligent  Christian; 
nor  does  our  belief  in  the  Bible,  Authorized, 
Revised  or  Standard,  as  the  word  of  God  and 
its  practical  value  to  us,  demand  faith  in  ver- 
2  .  17 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


bal  inspiration.  Its  God-given  lessons  need 
not  depend  upon  the  particular  word  or  words 
used  to  convey  these  lessons  to  us. 

How  is  this  fundamental  faith  acquired? 
It  is  written : — 

How  then  shall  they  call  on  him  in  whom  they 
have  not  believed?  and  how  shall  they  believe  in 
him  of  whom  they  have  not  heard?  and  how  shall 
they  hear  without  a  preacher?    (Rom.  10 : 14.) 

One  must  hear  about  God  and  the  Bible  as  a 
condition  precedent  to  any  Christian  belief. 
The  preacher  or  teacher  from  whom  the 
young  child  first  hears  the  story  may  be  a 
mother,  a  father,  some  other  member  of  the 
home  family;  or  the  lesson  may  come  from 
a  Sunday-school  superintendent  or  teacher, 
or  from  a  pastor,  minister,  priest.  From 
some  source  must  come  a  knowledge  of  what 
is  believed  by  those  who  should  be  respected 
and  trusted.  So  the  seed  is  planted.  And 
then,  having  heard  the  story  and  being,  in 
youth,  in  a  receptive  frame  of  mind,  why  does 
one  believe?  Why  believe  in  God  and  the 
Bible? 

From  Instinct 

From  a  natural,  inborn  impulse  in  no  way 
dependent  upon  reason  or  knowledge.  This 

18 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 


impulse  may  be  expected  to  differ  in  intensity 
as  the  characters  and  attributes  of  men  differ. 
No  two  men  are  exactly  alike  in  any  respect. 

Who  can  intelligently  question  the  practi- 
cally universal  existence  of  an  instinctive, 
impulsive  belief  of  every  unprejudiced  mind 
in  an  overruling  power  apparent  everywhere 
in  nature  during  every  moment  of  human 
life?  It  matters  not  where  this  power  is 
located,  what  its  attributes  may  be  or  by 
what  name  it  is  called.  That  such  a  power 
exists  we  may  know  as  certainly  as  we  know 
we  ourselves  exist.  In  Christian  lands  this 
power  is  the  Christian's  God.  In  other  lands 
this  same  power  is  known  by  other  names  and 
is  vested  with  other  attributes  than  those 
familiar  to  us. 

The  first  duty  of  every  intelligent  human 
being  is  to  seek  to  learn  the  causes  of  the 
effects  by  which  he  is  surrounded.  A  result- 
ing conviction  following  such  an  effort  should 
be  graven  on  the  heart  and  indelibly  im- 
planted in  the  memory,  that  every  creature, 
animate  or  inanimate,  is  a  part  of  the  endur- 
ing evidence  of  the  necessity  for  and  the  ex- 
istence of  a  Creator.  It  is  impossible  to 
comprehend  a  creature  without  a  Creator. 
It  is  equally  impossible  to  imagine  a  world 

19 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


filled  with  creatures  and  without  any  estab- 
lished and  controlled  relation  each  to  the 
other.  No  one  can  fail  to  be  impressed  with 
the  extent  and  grandeur  of  the  work  of  crea- 
tion when  it  is  even  dimly  appreciated,  and 
it  is  but  a  step  from  nature  to  nature's  God, 
to  the  God  who  created  and  who  rules.  By 
an  impulse  second  only  to  that  commanding 
our  faith  in  the  existence  of  a  God,  we  are 
prepared,  upon  proper  effort  of  our  own,  to 
believe  the  story  that  is  told  us  of  the  Bible. 
Particularly  so  if  it  comes  to  us  in  that  early 
period  of  our  lives  when  first  realizing  that 
there  is  a  God,  we  crave  some  knowledge 
about  him  and  his  attributes. 

From  Association 

Association  has  much  to  do  with  our  belief. 
If  we  are  brought  up  in  homes  that  are  really 
or  even  professedly  Christian,  church-going 
homes,  if  our  friends  and  associates  are  pro- 
fessedly believers,  we  little  by  little  absorb 
the  faith  from  association  with  those  around 
us,  until  it  becomes  a  part  of  our  daily  lives. 
It  may  be  a  crude  faith.  It  may  be  a  faith 
with  small  foundation  in  any  accurate  knowl- 
edge, a  faith  scarcely  traceable  in  its  influence 
upon  our  thought  and  actions;  but  it  exists, 

20 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 


possibly  a  germ  awaiting  perfect  develop- 
ment, or  possibly  to  die  from  neglect. 

From  Environment 

Environment  which  embraces  a  wider  field 
than  personal  or  family  association,  including 
all  the  surrounding  conditions,  influences, 
forces  of  our  community  life,  does  much  to 
mold  our  religious  beliefs.  In  our  own  land 
our  environment  is  distinctly  that  of  Chris- 
tian faith,  organization  and  effort.  The  in- 
fliuence  of  the  theories  of  Christianity  may 
be  more  useful  than  is  their  faulty  illustration 
in  the  lives  of  professing  believers  with  whom 
we  come  in  contact  and  who  time  and  again 
fall  far  short  of  the  theoretical  standards 
for  which  they  may  be  sincerely  striving. 

From  Observation 

Observation  is  an  important  factor  in  de- 
termining our  faith.  We  are  born  observers 
and  judges  of  others.  The  most  just  judge, 
perhaps,  is  the  pure,  unstained  child  in  whom 
the  Creator  has  implanted  the  power  of  in- 
stinctively and  correctly  distinguishing  sin- 
cerity from  insincerity,  truth  from  falsehood. 
It  is  as  children  that  our  first  religious  knowl- 
edge should  be  acquired.   If  our  observation 

21 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


then  leads  us  to  find  in  some  lives  a  humility, 
sincerity,  gentleness,  kindliness,  unselfish- 
ness, purity  that  we  fail  to  find  in  other  lives, 
we  naturally  seek  causes  for  these  differences. 
If  we  discover  the  causes,  or  think  that  we 
do,  in  differing  religious  faiths,  the  faith 
liable  to  attract  us  most  strongly  is  the  faith 
evidenced  in  good  works  and  a  pure  life. 
''By  their  fruits  ye  shall  know  them"  (Matt. 
7:20). 

From  Habit 

Association,  environment  and  observation 
form  the  soil  in  which  grows  habit.  Habit  is 
a  vital  force  in  religious  life.  The  force  of 
habit  for  good  or  evil  is  beyond  the  power 
of  language  to  describe.  A  grave  responsi- 
bility attaches  to  everyone,  whether  preacher, 
parent,  teacher  or  friend,  whose  influence  de- 
termines a  habit  of  thought  or  life  in  any  one 
of  God's  creatures. 

Speaking  of  religious  habit,  it  has  been 
said : — 

A  philosophic  observer  declares  that  men  by  the 
thousand  will  die  in  defense  of  a  creed  whose  doc- 
trines they  do  not  comprehend,  and  whose  tenets 
they  habitually  violate.  ...  It  is  equally  true 
that  men  by  the  thousands  will  cling  to  church  or- 
ganizations ^vith  instinctive  and  undying  fidelity 

22 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 


when  their  belief  in  mature  years  is  radically  differ- 
ent from  that  which  inspires  them  as  neophytes. 

The  religious  beliefs  of  a  majority  of  men 
and  women  are  more  largely  determined  by 
force  of  habit  than  by  reading  or  thought. 

From  Reading 

Reading  will  aid  our  judgment  and  should 
influence  our  conclusions.  It  should  be  an 
unprejudiced,  conscientious  reading,  carrying 
with  it  the  recollection  that  mere  assertion  is 
not  necessarily  truth.  It  should  be  such  a 
general  reading  as  is  essential  when  one  de- 
sires to  learn  the  truth,  and  should  not  be 
chosen  merely  to  support  a  preconceived  and 
possibly  erroneous  opinion  or  judgment.  We 
should  mark  clearly  the  distinction  between 
the  authority  of  the  Bible  and  the  authority 
of  any  creed,  dogma,  canon  or  other  mere 
theory  of  man  or  of  any  particular  religious 
organization,  as  to  what  the  Bible  messages 
mean. 

We  should  strive  earnestly  to  learn  for 
ourselves  what  lesson  this  marvelous  Bible 
has  for  us. 

Believe  not  every  spirit,  but  try  the  spirits 
whether  thoy  are  of  God :  because  many  false 
prophets  are  gone  out  into  the  world  (I  John  4:1). 

23 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


From  Thought 

Thought  follows  to  sum  up  all  that  has  gone 
before.  There  is  much  to  think  about.  We 
should  strive  to  comprehend  the  effect  of  the 
Bible  story  on  the  human  race  through  all 
the  centuries,  and  on  the  characters  of  indi- 
vidual men  and  women  who,  influenced  and 
guided  by  its  teachings,  have  stamped  their 
names  and  works  indelibly  on  the  history  of 
the  nations.  Intelligent  thought,  coupled 
with  a  desire  to  believe,  will  enable  us  in 
sincerity,  truth  and  humility  to  unite  with 
the  Christian  world  in  the  simple  creed  of 
the  masses,  **I  believe  in  God  and  in  the 
Bible."  In  the  Bible!  Not  necessarily  in 
the  theories  of  men  or  of  church  organizations 
as  to  what  is  or  is  not  in  or  meant  by  the 
Bible.  If  we  sincerely  seek,  we  are  promised 
we  shall  find  the  truth.  What  is  herein  writ- 
ten is  the  result  of  habit,  reading  and  thought 
upon  the  mind  of  one  individual  seeker  after 
the  truth,  as  it  is  in  our  Bible. 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 


r 

CHAPTER  II 

THE  CHRISTIAN  RELIGION 

Religion  has  been  defined  as  "any  system 
of  faith  and  worship."  It  has  also  been  de- 
fined as  "a  belief  binding  the  supernatural 
nature  of  man  to  a  supernatural  being  on 
whom  he  is  conscious  that  he  is  dependent." 
What  is  the  foundation  upon  which  rests  the 
marvelous  system  of  faith  in  God  and  the 
Bible,  known  to  the  world  as  the  Christian 
religion,  that  binds  the  supernatural  nature 
of  man  to  the  supernatural  being  or  power 
we  call  God?  Supplementing  our  instinctive 
belief  in  the  existence  of  the  overruling  power 
we  find  everywhere  in  nature  and  which  we 
call  God,  we  have  the  writings  of  the  Old  and 
New  Testament  authors,  who  we  believe  have 
been  inspired  by  God  to  thus  convey  to  us 
some  knowledge  of  his  attributes,  of  his  re- 
vealed will  and  of  certain  of  his  laws  that 
should  be  our  guide  in  our  daily  lives. 

25 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


Our  Bible  comprises  an  Old  Testament  or 
Covenant  and  a  New  Testament  or  Covenant. 

The  Old  Testament  Scriptures  embrace  an 
aggregation  of  various  writings  that  were  at 
first  disconnected  and  of  which  no  original 
manuscripts  are  known  to  exist. 

No  definite  and  conclusive  evidence  is  ac- 
cessible determining  beyond  question  when 
and  by  whom  the  several  books  in  the  Old 
Testament  were  written,  or  which  of  the  Old 
Testament  characters  are  undeniably  real  and 
which  may  be  imaginary.  Nor  have  we  any 
definite  and  conclusive  evidence  as  to  when 
and  by  what  authority  selection  was  first 
made  from  all  the  writings  by  the  wise  and 
good  men  of  old, — of  those  writings  there- 
after to  be  recognized  as  of  authority  and  to 
form  what  we  now  call  the  canon  of  our  Old 
Testament  Scriptures,  a  venerated  and  re- 
vered constituent  part  of  our  great  Bible. 
We  can  find  no  authoritative  record  that  any 
supreme  council  of  any  vmiversally  represen- 
tative early  and  dominant  church  organiza- 
tion affirmatively  adopted  and  gave  undis- 
puted formal  authority  to  any  existing  Old 
Testament  canon.  While  we  are  thus  de- 
void of  accurate  knowledge  respecting  the 
origin  and  authorship  of  and  the  early  canon- 
ical authority  for  the  Old  Testament  scrip- 

26 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 


tural  writings,  we  are  rarely  left  in  doubt 
as  to  the  simple,  helpful  lessons  they  have 
for  us  in  our  hours  of  need, — lessons  their 
reverent  reader  instinctively  feels  come  direct 
from  his  Creator  just  as  truly  as  he  instinct- 
ively feels  that  the  Creator  himself  exists. 
It  is  only  those  who  rightly  seek  that  find. 

What  is  true  of  the  Old  Testament  ap- 
pears to  be  almost  equally  true  of  the  New 
Testament  scriptural  writings.  There  are 
no  original  manuscripts  of  any  of  them 
known  to  exist.  There  is  little  or  no 
definite  and  conclusive  evidence  as  to  when 
or  by  whom  certain  of  the  important  books 
were  written,  nor  as  to  by  whom  and  by 
what  authority  particular  writings  were  first 
selected  from  other  religious  writings  of 
the  period  and  made  to  constitute  what 
we  call  the  canon  of  our  New  Testament 
Scriptures.  We  can  find  no  authoritative 
record  that  any  supreme  council  of  any  uni- 
versally representative,  early  and  dominant 
church  organization  affirmatively  adopted 
and  gave  undisputed  formal  authority  to  any 
New  Testament  canon. 

A  canon  has  been  defined  as  a  rule  or 
standard  by  reference  to  which  the  rectitude 
of  opinions  or  actions  may  be  determined; 

27 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


and  "which  can  be  established  only  by  an 
authority  recognized  by  all  to  be  undeniably 
empowered  to  establish  such  a  standard. 

AS  TO  THE  OLD  TESTAMENT  CANON 

Jewish  tradition,  it  has  been  said,  appears 
to  have  found  such  an  authority  in  the  so- 
called  "Great  Synagogue"  of  the  Hebrew 
nation.  This  Great  Synagogue,  confused 
(according  to  some  authorities)  with  the 
great,  popular  Jewish  assembly  described  in 
Nehemiah,  is  supposed  to  have  been  founded 
and  presided  over  by  Ezra.  It  had  a  mem- 
bership of  prophets  and  wise  men  variously 
estimated  between  eighty  and  one  hundred 
and  twenty  in  all,  and  it  controlled  the  na- 
tional and  religious  life  of  the  Jews  after  the 
return  from  Babylon  (450-200  B.  C).  Tra- 
dition credits  the  Great  Synagogue  with  pro- 
moting the  copying  of  the  Torah  (Penta- 
teuch), perfecting  the  Jewish  ritual  and 
amending  the  Old  Testament  text  where 
necessary  to  prevent  the  text  from  being 
misunderstood. 

To  this  Great  Synagogue  has  been  attrib- 
uted the  closing  work  upon  the  Jewish  Old 
Testament  canon.  This  work  is  said  not  to 
have  been  a  mere  scientific,  historical  or 

28 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 


higher  criticism  of  the  several  scriptural 
books,  with  reference  to  establishing  their 
authorship  or  the  harmonj'  of  their  contents. 
It  was  much  more  than  this.  It  was  the 
asserting,  with  an  authority  commanding  be- 
lief, that  certain  of  the  Old  Testament  books 
were  inspired  by  God  and  must  be  accepted 
as  di\dne  law  by  those  in  the  membership  of 
the  Hebrew  Church.  This,  the  Jewish  au- 
thorities assert,  could  only  have  been  the 
work  of  a  prophet  or  prophets,  and  that  by 
such  it  was  performed.  With  the  end  of  the 
line  of  Jewish  prophets  no  further  changes 
could  be  made.  The  canon  of  the  Hebrew 
Scriptures,  it  is  alleged,  was  thus  finally 
and  permanently  established.  Josephus  says 
that  with  the  age  of  Ezra  and  Nehemiah  the 
collection  of  the  sacred  books  was  completed 
by  an  authority  that  then  ceased  to  exist. 

In  any  consideration  of  the  authority  of 
the  Old  Testament  canon,  the  believer  in 
Jesus  Christ  as  the  Son  of  God  and  our 
Saviour  will  naturally  ask  what  the  attitude 
of  Christ  was  toward  the  Hebrew  Bible.  Our 
Saviour  was  a  Hebrew,  bom  of  a  Hebrew 
virgin,  circumcised  after  eight  days  accord- 
ing to  the  Hebrew  law,  nurtured  in  a  Hebrew 
home  where,  we  are  told:  **The  child  grew, 

29 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


and  waxed  strong  in  spirit,  filled  with  wis- 
dom: and  the  grace  of  God  was  upon  him. 
.  .  [learned  in  the  Hebrew  law,  so  that! 
when  he  was  twelve  years  old  [he  wasl  in  the 
temple,  sitting  in  the  midst  of  the  doctors, 
both  hearing  them,  and  asking  them  ques- 
tions. And  all  that  heard  him  were  aston- 
ished at  his  understanding  and  answers." 

From  the  temple  he  returned  to  the  He- 
brew family  home  in  Nazareth  where  he 
"was  subject  unto  them"  Joseph  and  his 
mother  Mary,  and  where  he  "increased  in 
wisdom  and  stature,  and  in  favour  with  God 
and  man. ' '  At  the  age  of  about  thirty  years 
he  left  his  Hebrew  home,  a  Hebrew  learned 
in  the  Hebrew  law,  and  entered  upon  his 
great  work.  He  was  familiar  with  the  scrip- 
tures of  the  Greek  Septuagint,  the  authorita- 
tive Old  Testament  version  of  the  time. 

To  the  believer  in  Jesus  Christ  as  the  Son 
of  God  and  our  Saviour,  it  is  of  intense  inter- 
est to  learn  and  strive  to  understand  what  he 
said  about  these  Hebrew  Scriptures  so  well 
known  to  him.  His  notable  reference  to 
them  was  when  he  said: — 

Think  not  that  I  am  come  to  destroy  the  law,  or 
the  prophets :  I  am  not  come  to  destroy,  but  to  ful- 
fil.   For  verily  I  say  unto  you.  Till  heaven  and 

30 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 


earth  pass,  one  jot  [i.e.,  the  smallest  letter  of  the 
Greek  alphabet]  or  one  tittle  [i.e.,  a  minute  part,  a 
jot]  shall  in  no  wise  pass  from  the  law,  till  all  be 
fulfilled  [or,  as  the  new  version  has  the  concluding 
words,  "till  all  things  be  accomplished  "J  (Matt. 
5:17,  18). 

That  this  statement  refers  to  the  spirit 
and  not  to  the  letter  of  the  law  appears  to  be 
clearly  evident  in  what  follows.  Christ 
dwells  upon  ''righteousness"  as  the  impor- 
tant character-attribute  of  those  who  will 
"enter  into  the  kingdom  of  heaven."  He 
strongly  condemns  the  so-called  righteous- 
ness of  the  Scribes  and  Pharisees  who  were 
the  strict  observers  of  the  mere  letter  of  the 
law. 

Then  our  Saviour  goes  on  to  say  in  that 
wonderful  record  known  to  us  as  the  Sermon 
on  the  Mount:  "Ye  have  heard  that  it  was 
said  by  [or,  to]  them  of  old  time;"  and,  "It 
hath  been  said";  and,  "Again,  ye  have  heard 
that  it  hath  been  said  by  [or,  to]  them  of 
old  time;"  and,  "Ye  have  heard  that  it  hath 
been  said."  These  or  similar  expressions 
appear  six  times  in  Matt.  5 : 21-44,  and  in 
each  case  they  are  followed  by,  "But  I  say 
unto  you."  In  each  case  what  was  said  "of 
old  time"  are  commands  recorded  in  the  Old 
Testament  as  spoken  to  the  Israelites  by  God 

31 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 

through  his  prophets,  and  they  have  been  re- 
placed by  the  commands  of  our  Saviour  fol- 
lowing his  words,  "But  I  say  unto  you." 

Each  such  command  beautifully  illustrates 
the  law  of  development  in  things  spiritual. 
The  old  Law  had  accomplished  its  purpose 
and  had  been  replaced  by  the  new.  The 
letter  of  the  law  and  the  rule  of  fear  had 
been  replaced  by  the  spirit  of  the  law  and  the 
rule  of  love.  "Thou  shalt  not  kill"  was  re- 
placed by  "Whosoever  is  angry  with  his 
brother. "  "  Thou  shalt  not  commit  adultery ' ' 
was  explained  by  "Whosoever  looketh  on  a 
woman  to  lust  after  her  hath  committed 
adultery  with  her  already  in  his  heart." 
"Thou  shalt  not  forswear  thyself"  became 
"Swear  not  at  all."  "Eye  for  eye"  devel- 
oped into  "Resist  not  evil."  "Hate  thine 
enemy"  became  "Love  your  enemies." 

Is  it  not  suggested  by  all  this  that  while 
the  Old  Testament  Scriptures  must  always 
be  preserved  for  reference  and  for  the  facts 
they  record  about  ancient  sacred  history, 
many  of  their  commands,  laws  and  ordinances 
that  have  long  since  fulfilled  their  purposes 
and  been  replaced  by  the  New  Testament  dis- 
pensation, may  with  advantage  be  eliminated 
from  the  Bible  viewed  as  a  sacred  book  for 

32 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 


general  reading?  With  this  elimination,  is 
it  not  probable  we  may  also  eliminate  all 
vitality  from  a  large  share  of  the  religious 
doubt  and  controversy  that  now  needlessly 
unsettle  many  formerly  revered  beliefs? 

Substantially  every  other  important  refer- 
ence by  Christ  and  by  his  apostles  to  the 
Hebrew  Scriptures  recorded  in  the  gospels 
appears  to  have  had  for  its  purpose  the  use 
of  these  Scriptures  to  establish  the  claim  of 
Christ  that  in  him  was  found  the  fulfilling 
of  the  Messianic  prophecies.  The  further 
scriptural  references  are  comparatively  few 
in  number  and  none  of  them  appear  to  dis- 
tinctly aflSrm  or  suggest  the  permanent  canon- 
icity  of  the  entire  Old  Testament  Scriptures, 
then  of  the  Hebrew  nation  and  now  the  com- 
mon property  of  Hebrew  and  Christian  alike. 

Christ  and  his  apostles  addressed,  primar- 
ily, the  Jew,  and  the  spirit  of  their  teaching 
was  distinctly  that  of  prophetic  fulfillment 
and  encouragement  to  faith  in  Christ  as  the 
Messiah. 

THE  NEW  TESTAMENT  CANON 

The  history  of  the  formation  of  the  New 
Testament  canon  has  been  said  to  be  involved 
in  even  greater  obscurity  than  that  of  the 
3  33 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


Old  Testament.  A  theory  as  to  the  forma- 
tion of  the  New  Testament  canon  that  has 
met  with  much  favor  among  those  accepting 
the  canon  as  by  authority,  is  that  each  im- 
portant early  church  possessed  as  complete 
a  set  as  it  could  obtain  of  apostolic  teachings 
and  writings  such  as  were  generally  recog- 
nized to  have  been  the  product  of  inspired 
teachers.  The  separate  churches  exercised 
the  right  of  critical  examination  as  to  each 
such  scriptural  writing  and  as  to  its  approval 
on  satisfactory  evidence  before  its  accept- 
ance. Comi3arisons  between  the  churches 
from  time  to  time  and  exchanges  of  informa- 
tion and  beliefs  would  naturally  result  in 
bringing  them  all  nearer  and  nearer  together 
and  in  finally  giving  them  all  a  substantially 
common  scriptural  canon.  This  would  ap- 
pear to  have  been  a  natural  process  of 
growth  and  development  through  which  to 
arrive  at  such  a  canon. 

Upon  a  somewhat  similar  line  of  reasoning 
another  authority  says: — 

The  conclusion  from  the  whole  facts  of  the  case 
can  be  none  other  than  that  the  Bible  is  entitled 
to  that  implicit  and  undivided  reverence  which  it 
demands  as  the  only  divinely  appointed  canon  of 
religious  truth  and  duty. 

34 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 


Another  interesting  view  of  this  same  gen- 
eral subject  is  stated  in  the  History  of  the 
Christian  Church  (Schaff)  from  which  the 
following  extracts  have  been  taken : — 

The  spirit  and  practice  of  the  Apostles  thus 
favored  a  certain  kind  of  popular  self-government, 
and  the  harmonious,  fraternal  cooperation  of  the 
different  elements  of  the  Church.  It  countenanced 
no  abstract  distinction  of  clergy  and  laity.  All 
believers  are  called  to  the  prophetic,  priestly  and 
kingly  offices  in  Christ.  The  bearers  of  authority 
and  discipline  should  therefore  never  forget,  that 
their  great  work  is  to  train  the  governed  to  free- 
dom and  independence,  and  by  the  various  spiritual 
offices  to  form  gradually  the  whole  body  of  believers 
to  the  unity  of  faith  and  knowledge,  and  to  the 
perfect  manhood  of  Christ. 

As  Paul  said  in  his  Epistle  to  the  Ephe- 
sians  (4:11-13):— 

And  he  gave  some,  apostles ;  and  some,  prophets ; 
and  some,  evangelists ;  and  some,  pastors  and  teach- 
ers ;  For  the  perfecting  of  the  saints,  for  the  work 
of  the  ministry,  for  the  edifying  of  the  body  of 
Christ.  Till  we  all  come  in  the  unity  of  the  faith, 
and  of  the  knowledge  of  the  Son  of  God,  unto  a 
perfect  man,  unto  the  measure  of  the  stature  of  the 
fulness  of  Christ. 

Dr.  Schaff  also  says  that  the  principal 
books  of  the  New  Testament:  the  four  Gos- 
pels, The  Acts,  the  thirteen  Epistles  of  St. 

35 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


Paul,  the  First  Epistle  of  Peter  and  the  First 
of  John,  were  in  general  use  in  the  Church 
as  early  as  the  second  century,  and  acknowl- 
edged to  be  apostolic,  inspired  by  the  Spirit 
of  Christ,  and  therefore  authoritative  and 
canonical,  and  that  we  may  therefore  call 
these  books  the  original  canon. 

The  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews,  the  Apoca- 
lypse, [the  book  of  Eevelation]  the  Second 
Epistle  of  Peter,  the  Second  and  Third 
Epistles  of  John,  the  Epistle  of  James,  and 
the  Epistle  of  Jude,  were,  he  says,  at  the 
beginning  of  the  fourth  century  neither  ac- 
cepted nor  rejected. 

Kitto  says  as  to  the  book  of  Revelation  that 
authorities  differ  as  to  whether  the  book  was 
written  by  John  the  Apostle,  the  son  of  Zebe- 
dee,  John  the  presbyter  or  John  (Mark). 

In  the  third  century  Dionysius  of  Alex- 
andria believed  the  book  of  Revelation  to 
have  been  written  by  John  the  presbyter  and 
he  is  here  specially  referred  to  because  he 
said  of  this  book : — 

But  for  my  part  I  dare  not  reject  the  book,  since 
many  of  the  brethren  have  it  high  in  esteem;  but 
adoring  it  to  be  above  my  understanding,  I  suppose 
it  to  contain  throughout  some  latent  and  wonderful 
meaning;  for  though  I  do  not  understand  it,  I 
suspect  there  must  be  some  profound  sense  in  the 

36 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 


words;  not  measuring  and  judging  these  things  by 
my  own  reason,  but  ascribing  more  faith,  I  esteem 
them  too  sublime  to  be  comprehended  by  me.  Nor 
do  I  condemn  what  I  have  not  been  able  to  under- 
stand, but  I  admit  the  more,  because  they  are  above 
my  reach. 

After  centuries  of  doubt,  discussion  and 
uncertainty,  the  book  of  Revelation  appears 
to  have  found  a  settled  place  in  the  canon  of 
the  New  Testament  Scriptures,  in  or  soon 
after  the  fourth  century. 

As  late  as  the  time  of  Martin  Luther,  how- 
ever, the  uncertainties  and  doubts  had  not 
all  disappeared.  Luther  said  of  the  book  of 
Revelation : — 

More  than  one  thing  presents  itself  in  this  book, 
as  a  reason  why  I  hold  it  to  be  neither  apostolic  nor 

prophetic  I  almost  imagine  to  myself 

a  fourth  book  of  Esdra  [Apocrypha]  before  me; 
and  certainly  find  no  reason  for  believing  it  was  set 

forth  by  the  Holy  Spirit  Moreover, 

even  were  it  a  blessed  thing  to  believe  what  is  con- 
tained in  it,  no  man  knows  what  that  is  

But  let  every  man  think  of  it  as  his  spirit  prompts 
him.  My  spirit  cannot  adapt  itself  to  the  produc- 
tion :  and  this  is  reason  enough  for  me  that  I  should 
not  highly  esteem  it,  that  Christ  is  neither  taught 
nor  perceived  in  it — which  is  the  great  business  of 
an  apostle. 

The  first  express  definition  of  the  New  Tes- 
tament canon,  in  the  form  in  which  it  has 

37 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


since  been  universally  retained,  notwithstand- 
ing all  doubts,  is  said  to  have  come  from  the 
North  African  synod  held  in  the  year  393  at 
Hippo,  the  episcopal  see  of  Augustine.  By 
that  time,  at  least,  the  whole  Church  appears 
to  have  become  unanimous  as  to  the  number 
of  the  books  to  be  accepted  as  canonical.  It 
has  been  said  that  there  seemed  to  be  no 
need,  therefore,  even  of  the  sanction  of  a 
General  Council. 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 

r 

CHAPTER  III 

THE  OLD  TESTAMENT  SCRIPTURES 

These  are  days  of  so-called  Higher  Criti- 
cism, when  earnest,  individual  seekers  after 
truth  arrive  at  sundry  conclusions  which  they 
believe  to  be  of  great  importance  and  to  per- 
manently settle  many  questions  thought  by 
others  equally  sincere  to  be  for  all  time  in- 
comprehensible and  incapable  of  human  solu- 
tion. Much  helpful  light  has  resulted  from 
reverent,  scholarly,  comparative  study  of  the 
Holy  Scriptures.  Unfortunately,  however, 
the  dogmatic  assertions  of  one  student  or 
another  are  often  mistaken  for  truths  of 
authority,  and  so  operate  to  unsettle  faith, 
invite  doubt  and  misgivings  and  introduce  a 
miserable  uncertainty  into  many  a  life. 

In  order  that  we  may  avoid  attaching  undue 
importance  to  these  scholarly  guesses  which 
appear  in  one  generation  to  be  probably 
superseded  by  others  in  the  generations  to 

39 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 

come,  and  that  we  may  retain  as  a  precious 
possession  such  a  belief  in  the  Old  Testament 
Scriptures  as  will  be  helpful  in  our  daily 
lives,  giving  us  comfort  instead  of  sorrow, 
strength  instead  of  weakness,  it  appears  de- 
sirable that  we  shall  endeavor  to  learn  the 
living  purpose  of  these  grand  old  writings 
in  their  relation  to  our  everlasting  welfare. 
The  object  of  all  spoken  or  written  words  is 
to  make  some  definite  impression  upon  the 
human  mind,  an  impression  that  has  an 
equally  definite  purpose  in  influencing  action 
or  belief.  If  the  impressions  made  upon 
many  individual  minds  are  alike,  then  we 
have  substantial  uniformity  in  belief  and  in 
resulting  action  through  organized  effort. 
These  impressions  may  not  be  at  all  depend- 
ent for  their  vital  force  upon  whether  the 
words  that  produce  them  state  historic  facts, 
parables,  miracles,  so  called,  or  poetic  fancies. 
The  impressions  and  the  resulting  beliefs  to 
be  expressed  in  action  are  the  matters  of  last- 
ing importance,  not  the  mere  machinery  by 
the  use  of  which  the  impressions  were  created. 
If  we  can  discover  the  impression  designed  to 
be  made  upon  the  human  mind  by  the  Old 
Testament  Scriptures  and  its  purpose,  and  if 
we  find  that  these  Scriptures  actually  have 

40 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 


made  and  do  make  this  impression  and  accom- 
plish this  purpose,  then  they  are  performing 
their  mission,  regardless  of  our  ability  or 
inability  to  establish  undeniable  facts  as  to 
their  authorship;  characters,  real  or  imagi- 
nary; and  other  details  of  more  or  less  gen- 
eral interest. 

In  the  effort  to  gain  some  aid  while  seek- 
ing to  know  the  living  purpose  of  the  Old 
Testament  writings,  a  communication  of  in- 
quiry was  addressed  to  certain  church  papers 
and  to  individuals  whose  opinions  it  was 
thought  should  be  valuable.  The  communica- 
tion read  substantially  as  follows: — 

This  is  to  invite  you  to  state  concisely  what  you 
believe  to  have  been  the  clear,  definite  purpose,  of 
enduring  importance,  for  which  the  Old  Testament 
Scriptures  were  given  to  mankind.  They  must 
have  been  given  and  preserved  through  all  the  cen- 
turies for  some  such  purpose.  What  was  it  ?  May 
not  a  clear  realization  of  this  purpose  of  the  Old 
Testament  Scriptures  be  a  valuable  aid  in  deciding 
as  to  the  importance,  or  otherwise,  of  much  of  the 
so-called  Higher  Criticism  of  the  day,  and  thus  save 
needless  doubts? 

Some  of  the  replies  received  from  both  minis- 
ters and  laymen  of  various  beliefs  read  as 
follows : — 

Answer  No.  i :  This  book  of  the  law  shall  not 
41 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


depart  out  of  thy  mouth;  but  thou  shalt  meditate 
therein  day  and  night,  that  thou  mayest  observe  to 
do  according  to  all  that  is  written  therein  (Joshua 
1:8).  Our  Saviour  struck  the  keynote  when  he 
said  of  the  Scriptures, ' '  They  are  they  which  testify 
of  me"  (John  5:39). 

Answer  No.  2 :  The  definite  purpose  of  everlast- 
ing importance  which  God  had  in  view  in  giving  the 
world  the  Old  Testament  scriptures  was  to  educate 
a  people,  whose  vocation  was  to  receive  and  com- 
municate the  highest  revelation  of  God  through 
Jesus  Christ ;  to  teach  by  the  history  of  these  people 
moral  lessons  of  the  highest  value  to  future  gener- 
ations; to  form  with  the  New  Testament  one  com- 
prehensive scheme  of  redemption  which  God  had  in 
view  since  the  fall  of  man. 

Answrer  No.  3 : 1  send  a  brief  reply  to  your  ques- 
tion regarding  the  Old  Testament  Scriptures  of 
the  Jews.  I  have  alwaj's  thought  that  they  were 
the  stepping-stones  to  Christianity;  that  the  Jews 
were  not  fitted  to  receive  the  higher  law  of  love 
God  and  your  neighbor  as  yourself;  they  were 
taught  that  which  was  the  highest  law  they  were 
capable  of — the  eye  for  an  eye,  tooth  for  a  tooth 
law — ;  just  as  there  is  great  spiritual  difference  in 
good  men,  some  are  much  higher  than  others  in 
spiritual  life,  so  it  was  with  the  early  Jews. 

Answer  No.  4 :  In  course  of  time  the  over-ruling 
power,  always  recognized  in  nature,  saw  fit  to  give 
his  creatures  a  better  idea  of  himself,  his  work  and 
purposes  and  so  he  gave  to  the  Hebrew  nation,  and 
through  that  remarkable  people  to  all  the  world, 
the  revelation  of  himself  contained  in  the  scrip- 
tural books  of  the  Old  Testament.  I  believe  the 
definite  enduring  purpose  of  these  books  is  to  lead 

42 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 


all  men  to  recognize  the  over-ruling  power  they  find 
in  nature  to  be  the  Creator,  the  personal  God,  de- 
scribed in  the  Old  Testament  and  acquaint  us  with 
some  of  his  attributes.  When  this  foundation  stone 
is  permanently  secure,  then  to  prepare  the  way  for 
the  clearer  and  more  advanced  vision  given  us  in 
the  life  and  teachings  of  Christ  as  set  forth  in  the 
gospels  of  the  New  Testament. 

Answer  No.  5:  God's  purpose  of  enduring  im- 
portance was :  To  reveal  himself  through  the  law ; 
denunciation  of  evil;  revelation  of  good.  And  to 
reveal  his  hatred  of  sin,  pity  for  the  sinner;  and 
desire  to  redeem  and  save  him;  and  to  hold  out  a 
hope  of  salvation  through  the  Messianic  prophecies. 

Answer  No.  6 :  The  purpose  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment was  primarily  to  teach  and  preserve  Alono- 
theism  in  opposition  to  Pantheism  and  Polytheism. 
But  there  is  also  in  the  Old  Testament  a  marked 
strain  of  prophecy.  The  New  Testament  is  pri- 
marily a  record  of  the  life  and  teachings  of  Christ. 
But  he  fulfills  absolutely  the  prophecies  of  the  Old 
Testament.  The  New  Testament  and  the  Old  thus 
supplement  and  explain  each  other:  and  the  spirit 
of  prophecy  is  clearly  testimony  of  Jesus.  (Rev. 

19:10.) 

Therefore  the  ultimate  purpose  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment is  to  reveal  the  nature  of  God  and  to  show 
the  divinity  of  Jesus  Christ. 

Answer  No.  7 :  In  reply  I  would  say  that  the 
Old  Testament  scriptures  present  a  picture  of  a 
people,  with  a  singular  gift  for  religion,  growing  in 
the  knowledge  of  God,  and  becoming  acquainted 
with  God's  plan  for  man,  through  unique  racial 
experiences.  The  Scriptures  constitute  a  record  of 
progressive  revelation,  in  which  God  is  disclosing 

43 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


himself  to  individuals,  and  through  them  to  a  great 
race. 

The  Old  Testament  tells  a  story  of  spiritual  evo- 
lution, and  sets  forth  developing  ideals  of  charac- 
ter, conduct  and  faith.  In  its  pag3S  we  see  men 
struggling  after  righteousness,  and  discover  souls 
in  quest  of  the  eternal.  Written  plain  through  all 
these  Scriptures,  is  the  history  of  the  growth  of 
man's  consciousness  of  God.  This,  it  seems  to  me 
in  a  word,  is  the  underlying  value  of  the  Old  Tes- 
tament which  justifies  the  preservation  of  its  books. 

Answer  No.  8:  I  would  answer  (what  I  believe 
to  have  been  the  clear  purpose  of  enduring  impor- 
tance for  which  the  Old  Testament  scriptures  were 
given  to  man)  in  the  words  of  the  Apostle  Paul: 

"  For  whatsoever  things  were  written  aforetime 
were  written  for  our  learning,  that  we  through 
patience  and  comfort  of  the  scriptures  might  have 
hope"  (Rom.  15:4).  "  Now  all  these  things  hap- 
pened unto  them  for  ensamples :  and  they  are  writ- 
ten for  our  admonition,  upon  whom  the  ends  of  the 
world  are  come"  (I  Cor.  10:11). 

The  Church  Standard  in  its  issue  of  Sep- 
tember 29,  1906,  replied  in  an  editorial  (by 
the  late  John  Fulton,  D.D.,  LL.D.)  so  ex- 
tremely interesting  and  instructive  that  it  is 
here  by  permission  given  in  full : — 

Answer  No.  g :  "We  find  upon  our  table  this  week 
a  letter  of  inquiry  on  a  subject  of  very  great  im- 
portance. We  do  not  pretend  to  possess  either  the 
knowledge  or  the  versatility  which  Avould  warrant 
our  undertaking  to  answer  all  the  questions,  or  to 
clear  away  all  the  difficulties  that  might  be  pro- 

44 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 


pounded  to  us  by  our  correspondents ;  but  the  letter 
now  before  us  points  to  the  very  taproot  of  many 
confusions  of  mind  which  would  be  less  distressing 
if  a  few  simple  facts  were  remembered.  Our  cor- 
respondent's inquiry  is  as  follows: — 

' '  This  is  to  invite  you  to  state  concisely  what  you 
believe  to  have  been  the  clear,  definite  purpose,  of 
enduring  importance,  for  which  the  Old  Testament 
Scriptures  were  given  to  mankind.  They  must 
have  been  given  and  preserved  through  all  the  cen- 
turies for  some  such  purpose :  what  was  it  ?  Would 
not  a  clear  conception  of  the  purpose  of  the  Old 
Testament  Scriptures  be  a  valuable  aid  in  judging 
of  the  importance,  or  otherwise,  of  much  of  the 
so-called  Higher  Criticism  ?  And  might  it  not  save 
many  needless  doubts?" 

We  are  not  by  any  means  sure  that  doubts  are 
invariably  bad  things.  When  they  are  such  as  to 
set  the  doubter  on  a  course  of  candid  and  veracious 
inquiry,  they  are  good  and  useful.  When  they 
relate  to  matters  of  which  our  knowledge  is  not  suf- 
ficient to  justify  a  positive  opinion,  they  are  modest 
and  reasonable.  Many  doubts  concerning  the  Old 
Testament  which  are  widely  prevalent  at  the  pres- 
ent time  belong  to  one  or  other  of  these  classes, 
but  many  more  are  infinitely  less  respectable. 
When  people  talk  of  their  doubts  as  if  it  were  a 
rather  fine  thing  to  be  a  doubter,  they  seldom  care 
to  satisfy  their  minds  by  honest  inquiry,  and  the 
last  thing  they  ever  think  of  doing  is  to  confess 
their  ignorance. 

Our  correspondent  writes  in  the  interest  of  seri- 
ous and  candid  people  who  are  both  disturbed  and 
distressed  by  the  doubtful  position  into  which  the 
Old  Testament  has  fallen,  they  hardly  know  how; 

45 

I 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


and  our  answer  shall  be  given  in  such  a  way  that^ 
using  the  Old  Testament  as  its  own  interpreter, 
they  may  be  able  to  recognize  that  the  questions 
raised  by  modern  criticism  do  not  justify  the  un- 
settlement  of  faith  which  they  have  undoubtedly 
caused  in  many  minds. 

Our  correspondent  has  asked  us  to  tell  what  is 
the  enduring  purpose  of  the  Old  Testament,  but  the 
Old  Testament  itself  gives  no  direct  answer  to  that 
question.  If,  then,  we  are  to  discover  its  purpose, 
we  must  begin  with  an  examination  of  its  character. 

Our  first  observation  is  that  the  Old  Testament 
is  not  a  single  book,  but  a  library  of  books  written 
by  many  authors,  who  were  separated  by  long  ages 
of  time  and  differ  from  each  other  still  more  widely 
in  their  several  points  of  view  and  in  the  subject 
and  structure  of  their  writings.  In  this  library  we 
find  books  of  history,  like  Genesis,  and  in  some 
cases  duplicate  histories  of  the  same  period,  as  in 
Kings  and  Chronicles.  "We  have  a  love  drama  in 
the  Canticles;  a  collection  of  hymns  and  sacred 
songs  in  the  Psalms ;  a  noble  dramatic  work  of  theo- 
logical philosophy  in  Job ;  homely  "wisdom"  litera- 
ture in  Proverbs  and  Ecclesiastes,  and  many  docu- 
ments containing  the  counsels,  instructions,  com- 
plaints, rebukes  and  predictions  of  Prophets.  In- 
terspersed among  all  these  we  have  such  personal 
histories  as  those  of  Ruth  and  Esther,  and  instruc- 
tive stories  like  that  of  Jonah,  written  with  a  didac- 
tic moral  and  religious  purpose.  The  next  obser- 
vation is  that  the  books  of  the  Hebrew  library  give 
no  account  of  themselves.  The  titles  prefixed  to 
them  were  not  chosen  by  their  authors,  but  by 
editors  of  later  ages.  This  is  extremely  important. 
When  we  find,  for  instance,  that  the  title  of  "The 

46 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 


First  Book  of  IMoses,  called  Genesis"  was  never 
authorized  by  ]\Ioses  himself  and  was  never  inserted 
until  many  ages  after  his  death,  the  general  belief 
that  the  entire  book  of  Genesis  was  written  by  Moses 
at  once  appears  to  be  destitute  of  authority.  He 
may  have  written  the  whole  book,  or  part  of  it,  or 
he  may  have  communicated  all  or  part  of  its  con- 
tents to  others,  without  himself  personally  reducing 
any  part  of  them  to  writing.  On  none  of  these 
points  does  the  Book  of  Genesis  or  any  other  book 
of  Holy  Scripture  give  us  any  certain  information ; 
and  simply  to  recognize  that  fact  is  to  protect  one's 
self  against  the  false  and  foolish  notion  that  if 
Moses  did  not  write  the  whole  of  the  Pentateuch 
the  Bible  is  not  what  it  pretends  to  be. 

A  closer  inspection  of  many  books  of  the  Old 
Testament  library  shows  that  they  do  not  now  ap- 
pear in  their  original  form,  but  must  have  been 
edited,  some  of  them  more  than  once,  long  after 
the  ages  to  which  they  refer  and  the  age  in  which 
they  may  have  been  written.  In  many  cases  the 
editors  have  maintained  the  continuity  of  the  his- 
tory by  combining  one  early  document  with  another. 
Thus,  if  we  compare  the  account  of  creation  which 
begins  the  Book  of  Genesis  Avith  the  verj^  different 
account  which  begins  with  the  fourth  verse  of  the 
second  chapter  of  the  same  book,  no  one  can  fail  to 
observe  that  the  author  of  the  former  invariably 
speaks  of  the  Creator  as  "GOD,"  while  the  author 
of  the  latter  invariably  calls  Him  "The  Lord  God," 
or  "The  God  Jehovah,"  as  the  phrase  might  equally 
well  be  translated.  It  requires  no  long  process  of 
reasoning  to  conclude  that  these  two  passages  must 
have  been  written  by  difforent  men.  probably  at 
widely  different  ages  in  the  history  of  the  Hebrew 

47 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


people,  and  more  than  probably  from  different  re- 
ligious points  of  view,  and  must  have  been  subse- 
quently included  in  one  narrative  by  a  later  com- 
piler or  editor. 

Our  next  observation  is  that  nobody  knows  just 
when  or  by  whom  these  books  of  the  Hebrew  library 
were  collected  into  one  volume,  nor  why  these  par- 
ticular books  were  preferred  to  the  Book  of  Jasher 
and  others  which  are  actually  cited  as  authorities 
by  the  Biblical  writers,  although  the  books  them- 
selves were  not  admitted  to  the  Canon  and  are  now 
lost. 

These  are  some  of  the  main  facts  of  which  the 
ordinary  reader  can  satisfy  himself  with  very  little 
trouble.  But  having  thus  ascertained  the  character 
of  the  Hebrew  Scriptures,  we  have  now  to  inquire 
into  the  enduring  purpose  of  their  original  composi- 
tion and  preservation  through  so  many  ages  to  the 
present  time.  No  one,  we  suppose,  can  read  the 
pages  of  the  Old  Testament  without  a  deep  feeling 
that  they  have  a  religious  purpose,  but  just  as  little 
can  one  fail  to  observe  that  they  are  not  always 
consistent  with  each  other.  "We  are  not  now  allud- 
ing to  discrepancies  between  different  accounts  of 
the  same  incident  which  are  found  in  some  of  the 
historical  books  but  to  a  difference  of  the  moral  and 
religious  ideas,  which  is  a  matter  of  vastly  more 
importance.  To  a  Christian  ear  the  cursing  psalms 
which  we  find  in  the  Psalter  are  clearly  not  of  the 
same  moral  or  religious  plane  with  that  of  the 
prophets,  whose  idea  of  the  character  of  God  and 
the  duty  of  man  was  far  nearer  to  that  of  Jesus 
Christ. 

At  first  sight  these  facts  may  seem  to  divest  the 
Old  Testament  Scriptures  of  all  authority,  histori- 

48 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 


cal,  moral  and  religious.  But  if  we  turn  to  the 
New  Testament  we  find  in  one  single  sentence  a 
luminous  exposition  of  them.  In  the  first  chapter 
of  the  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews  we  are  told  that 
"God,  who  at  different  times  and  in  various  por- 
tions spake  in  time  past  unto  the  fathers  by  the 
prophets,  hath  in  these  last  days  spoken  unto  us 
by  His  Son." 

That  statement  affirms  the  fact  of  revelation — 
God  spake  unto  the  fathers.  But  it  does  not  speak 
of  one  single  revelation,  completely  given  at  one 
time  and  in  a  form  which  should  endure  to  all  time. 
It  speaks  of  many  partial  revelations  given  from 
age  to  age  in  different  portions  as  the  Hebrew 
people  were  able  to  bear  them.  The  "portions" 
were  as  various  in  their  character  as  they  were 
partial  in  their  extent,  and  they  were  given  at 
successive  intervals.  Thus,  in  the  life  of  Abraham 
we  find  that,  even  after  he  was  called  of  God  to 
leave  his  country  and  his  kindred  in  order  to  be- 
come the  progenitor  of  a  chosen  people,  he  was 
allowed  for  many  years  to  continue  to  believe  in  the 
lawfulness  of  human  sacrifices  until  a  special  reve- 
lation delivered  him  and  his  descendants  forever 
from  that  cruel  superstition.  Just  so  it  is  quite 
evident  that  the  prophetess  Deborah  and  the  authors 
of  the  cursing  psalms  attributed  to  David  had  not 
yet  received  the  fuller  revelation  of  God  which 
came  to  prophets  of  far  later  times. 

"What  we  have,  then,  in  the  Old  Testament  is  not 
a  single  and  consistent  revelation  of  the  character 
and  will  of  God.  It  is  not  even  a  formal  history 
of  the  partial  and  successive  revelations  which  are 
recognized  in  the  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews.  The  Old 
Testament  appears  on  its  face  to  be  precisely  what 
4  49 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


the  New  Testament  writer  would  lead  one  to  expect. 
In  history  and  poetry  and  parable  and  prophecy  it 
contains  the  fragmentary  evidence  of  many  various 
and  partial  revelations  to  the  Hebrew  people.  So 
regarded,  it  is  infinitely  precious  as  a  revelation 
of  God's  dealing,  not  only  with  Israel,  hut  with  all 
other  peoples.  For  God  has  no  step-children ;  and 
if  it  is  true,  as  no  one  can  doubt,  that  Israel  was 
His  Chosen  People  in  respect  of  religious  privilege, 
it  is  no  less  true,  as  Thomas  Arnold  said,  that  Rome 
and  Greece  were  likewise  chosen  peoples  for  their 
several  places  in  the  evolution  of  God's  purpose 
for  the  world. 

The  view  we  have  been  presenting  is  neither  new 
nor  original.  It  is  the  view  that  was  taken  fifty 
years  ago  by  Frederic  Denison  Llauriee,  Charles 
Kingsley  and  others  who  were  well  entitled  to  be 
classed  as  Catholics  and  Broad  Churchmen.  They 
were  Catholics  because  they  held  the  Catholic  faith 
alike  in  its  simplicity  and  in  its  integrity;  and 
they  were  Broad  Churchmen  in  the  broadest  truest 
sense  of  that  much-abused  word.  They  were 
Churchmen  through  and  through,  and  because  they 
were  Catholic  Churchmen  their  sympathies  reached 
out  to  all  the  wide  world  of  human  souls  for  whom 
Christ  died.  In  the  Old  Testament  Scriptures 
those  men  rejoiced  to  find  records  of  God's  provi- 
dential guidance,  not  only  of  Israel,  but  of  Israel's 
enemies,  and  in  His  recorded  severities  of  judgment 
they  discovered  gleaming  illustrations  of  His  good- 
ness. Pharaoh  and  his  host  in  the  Red  Sea,  "for 
his  mercy  endureth  for  ever"  !  Why  not?  The 
overthrow  of  Pharaoh  gave  deliverance  to  Israel; 
that  was  one  mercy.  But  what  better  fate  could 
have  befallen  Pharaoh  and  his  followers  than  to  die 

50 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 


like  gallant  men,  with  harness  on  their  backs,  by 
a  swift  and  painless  death?  They  had  gone  from 
bad  to  worse ;  if  they  had  lived  longer  they  proba- 
bly would  have  gone  further  on  the  same  bad  road, 
and  it  was  the  disguised  mercy  of  God  which 
stopped  them  at  the  Red  Sea. 

If  one  regards  the  Old  Testament  from  that  point 
of  view,  he  will  need  no  formal  exposition  of  its 
enduring  purpose  as  a  revelation  of  God's  mode  of 
action  towards  the  sons  of  men  in  all  ages;  and 
we  are  bold  to  say  that,  when  it  is  so  regarded, 
there  is  nothing  in  any  of  the  recent  criticisms  of 
its  contents  which  need  disturb  the  faith  of  any 
man.  Llany  critical  theories,  once  hotly  main- 
tained, have  been  utterly  abandoned;  others  which 
were  once  merely  conjectures  have  passed  into  the 
stage  of  probability  or  certainty ;  many  still  remain 
on  which  it  is  both  wise  and  dutiful  to  hold  one's 
judgment  in  suspense.  But  the  more  one  studies 
the  Old  Testament,  the  more  clearly  will  he  perceive 
that  all  the  successive  revelations  which  it  records 
were  slowly  preparing  Israel  and  the  world  for  the 
clearer  revelation  of  God  in  Christ,  and  the  more 
surely  will  he  find  reason  to  believe  that  the  Divine 
Shepherd  of  the  nations  is  still  using  the  same 
method  of  gradual  illumination  in  His  teaching  of 
mankind. 

Since  this  chapter  was  written,  attention 
has  been  directed  to  The  Origin  and  Per- 
manent Value  of  the  Old  Testament  (Kent), 
and  from  it  the  following  is  recorded  as  prac- 
tically an  additional  answer  to  the  query  of 
this  chapter : — 

.51 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


Answer  No.  lo:  One  dominant  aim  determines 
the  form  of  each  book  and  the  selection  of  individ- 
ual passages  and  binds  together  the  whole:  it  is 
effectively  to  set  forth  spiritual  truth  and  to  mould 
in  accordance  with  God's  will  the  characters  and 
beliefs  of  men. 

For  the  purpose  of  easy  comparison  these 
answers  to  the  query  as  to  the  enduring  pur- 
pose of  the  Old  Testament  Scriptures  may 
be  briefly  summarized  as  follows : — 

1  *'Do  according  to  all  that  is  written 
therein."    ....   They  testify  of  Christ. 

2  They  educated  the  Hebrew  nation  to 
teach  moral  lessons  that,  with  the  New  Testa- 
ment teaching,  give  one  comprehensive 
scheme  of  redemption. 

3  They  are  stepping-stones  of  Christianity. 

4  Inspire  faith  in  God  and  knowledge  of 
his  attributes.  Prepare  for  the  New  Testa- 
ment gospels. 

5  Reveal  God  in  relation  to  good  and  evil 
and  give  hope  of  salvation  through  Messianic 
prophecies. 

6  Teach  Monotheism — Prophetic  testimony 
as  to  Jesus  Christ. 

7  History  of  growth  of  m^n's  conscious- 
ness of  God. 

8  For  our  learning,  admonition,  and  that 
we  may  have  hope. 

52 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 


9  Reveal  God 's  mode  of  action  toward  men 
in  all  ages. 

10  Set  forth  spiritual  truth  and  mold  men 
by  God 's  will. 

An  impressive  fact  developed  by  this  in- 
quiry as  to  the  clear,  definite  purpose  of  en- 
during importance  for  which  the  Old  Testa- 
ment Scriptures  were  given  to  mankind,  has 
been  the  almost  universal  desire  for  time  to 
think  before  attempting  to  express  this  pur- 
pose in  words.  The  question  seems  to  have 
been  received  as  a  new  one  and  not,  as  would 
naturally  be  expected,  as  an  old  and  primary 
question  long  since  settled.  Then  the  lack 
of  exact  uniformity  of  opinion,  while  not  in- 
consistent with  the  existence  of  a  recognized 
simple  and  fundamental  purpose,  clearly  sug- 
gests that  the  great  Book  causes  many  im- 
pressions with  varying  purposes  for  the  use 
of  man,  and  that  men  are  attracted  chiefly  by 
those  most  readily  comprehended  by  them 
and  applicable  to  their  individual  needs. 

It  is  perhaps  safe  to  say  that  the  writers  of 
the  answers  herein  quoted  agree  that  the 
simple,  fundamental  purposes  of  the  Old  Tes- 
tament Scriptures  included  the  inspiring  of 
faith  in  one  all-powerful  God,  communicating 
some  knowledge  of  certain  of  his  attributes 

53 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


and  preparing  men  for  the  coming  of  the  Mes- 
siah. Is  there  any  reasonable  doubt  about 
their  having  accomplished  these  purposes,  not 
yet  for  every  one  of  God's  creatures,  but  for 
a  great  and  increasing  army  of  them  enrolled 
under  his  banner — the  living  and  the  dead  ? 

All  that  has  been  here  written  touches  only 
the  surface  of  a  subject  believed  to  be  worthy 
of  profound  study  and  thought.  Such  study 
and  thought  should  enable  us  to  realize  the 
small  likelihood  there  is  that  the  criticism  of 
any  finite,  human  being  can  interfere  in  any 
lasting  way  with  the  divine  purpose  of  the 
Book  of  the  ages.  It  will  continue  to  comfort 
all  who  seek  its  aid  in  the  future,  as  it  has 
done  during  all  the  ages  past. 

This  chapter  concludes  by  again  propound- 
ing the  query  with  which  it  opened : — 

What  do  you  believe  to  have  been  the  clear, 
definite  purpose,  of  enduring  importance,  for  which 
the  Old  Testament  Scriptures  were  given  to  man- 
kind? 

A  like  question  might  be  helpfully  consid- 
ered as  to  the  New  Testament  Scriptures. 
Think  about  it,  reader,  and  then  try  to  ex- 
press your  conclusions  in  language  satisfac- 
tory to  yourself  I 


54 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 


r 

CHAPTER  IV 

SOME  BIBLE  IMPRESSIONS 

Nothing  could  better  illustrate  the  infirmity 
of  human  nature  than  the  willing  obedience 
of  the  Hebrew  nation  to  the  early  command 
to  'hate  ihine  enemy,'  and  the  equally  unwill- 
ing obedience  of  Christian  nations  to  the  later 
command  to  'love  your  enemies.'  The  al- 
most incomprehensible  spirit  of  the  early 
Mosaic  law  which  practically  commanded  the 
Hebrew  nation  to  prey  upon  their  enemies, 
to  steal  personal  and  real  property,  to  mur- 
der in  a  wholesale  way,  slowly,  very  slowly 
receded  as  the  passing  ages  brought  the  world 
nearer  and  yet  nearer  to  the  time  when  the 
command  to  pray  for  our  enemies  would  rep- 
resent the  Christian  spirit.  The  spirit  of 
much  of  the  Old  Testament  teaching  is  to 
fear  God,  while  that  of  the  New  Testament  is 
to  love  God.  The  advance  of  the  Christian 
spirit  of  love  appears  to  have  been  and  still 

55 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 

to  be  as  painfully  slow  in  its  progress  toward 
a  universal  and  willing  allegiance  of  all  the 
people,  as  was  the  recession  of  the  spirit  of 
fear  and  hate  in  the  early  ages.  "We  are  told 
that  "perfect  love  casteth  out  fear"  (I  John 
4 : 18),  and  yet  we  find  the  disciples,  although 
in  constant  personal  contact  with  Christ  were 
*'sore  afraid"  and  feared  exceedingly" 
when  in  the  presence  of  his  miraculous  power. 
Even  they  could  not  have  then  experienced 
the  "perfect  love"  for  him. 

When  the  practice  of  the  Christian  world, 
in  daily  life,  accords  with  its  professions, 
what  will  remain  in  the  way  of  any  possible 
further  upward  progress?  The  future  alone 
can  tell.  Let  us  consider  a  moment  some 
of  the  teachings  of  our  curious  old  Bible. 
The  so-called  first  five  Books  of  Moses,  or  bet- 
ter, perhaps,  books  relating  to  Moses,  will 
serve  our  present  purpose  of  illustration.  It 
is  questionable  whether  there  is  anything  in 
any  literature,  sacred  or  profane,  so  grand 
in  its  simplicity  and  comprehensiveness  as 
are  the  first  two  verses  of  the  first  chapter  of 
Genesis.  Imagine  the  conditions  with  which 
they  dealt!  An  omnipresent,  omnipotent, 
omniscient  power,  without  beginning  or  end 
of  days ;  dwelling  in  a  boundless  space,  for  a 

56 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 


limitless  time — a  space  always  containing,  we 
may  perhaps  venture  to  assume,  an  unchang- 
ing but,  to  our  finite  apprehension,  immeasur- 
able quantity  of  matter.  The  power  that  we 
call  God  comprehended  by  his  creatures,  in 
the  absence  of  revelation,  only  as  an  overrul- 
ing, feared  and  unknown  power  in  nature. 
This  great  God  elected  at  some  period  of  time 
to  change  the  face  of  nature.  We  speak  of 
him  reverently  as  the  Creator,  but  the  only 
real  meaning  creator  has  to  us  is  not  one  who 
makes  something  out  of  nothing  but  rather 
one  who  creates  by  a  rearrangement  of  exist- 
ing matter.  Will  it  not  be  a  little  more  com- 
prehensible if  we  so  consider  the  first  great 
creative  work  of  which  there  is  any  existing 
record  ? 

What  is  said  in  the  opening  verses  of 
Genesis  about  this  great  creative  work? 

In  the  bef?inning  God  created  the  heaven  and  the 
earth.  And  the  earth  was  without  form,  and  void ; 
and  darkness  was  upon  the  face  of  the  deep.  And 
the  Spirit  of  God  moved  upon  the  face  of  the  waters 
(Gen.  1: 1.  2). 

Think,  if  you  can,  of  an  earth,  of  anything 
"without  form,  and  void"!  Try  to  compre- 
hend what  these  words  suggest.  Then  add 
"darkness"! 

57 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


Wliat  is  the  effect  of  this  account  of  the 
creation  upon  the  human  mind  ?  Is  it  not  to 
give  the  mind  a  resting  place  in  boundless 
space  and  time,  a  "beginning,"  and  with  it, 
for  the  first  time  in  the  history  of  the  race, 
a  ray  of  knowledge  of  the  power  found  every- 
where in  nature,  that  power  being  the  "God" 
who  "created  the  heaven  and  the  earth"? 
It  does  not  seem  to  be  very  much  to  know,  per- 
haps, but  it  lifts  one  far  above  the  state  of 
mind  without  this  knowledge.  God  created 
the  earth.  What  was  the  earth?  It  was  a 
something  material  but  "without  form,  and 
void."  To  human  comprehension  "darkness 
was,"  indeed,  "upon  the  face  of  the  deep." 
Then  God  first  appeared  in  the  record  as  a 
Spirit — "the  Spirit  of  God  moved  upon  the 
face  of  the  waters."  Have  any  other  so  few 
words  ever  meant  so  much  to  the  advance- 
ment of  human  knowledge  and  of  preparation 
for  what  was  to  follow? 

May  not  ages  have  elapsed  after  this  crea- 
tive effort  before  God  said,  "Let  there  be 
light"? — the  first  words  recorded  as  spoken 
by  God. 

If  it  is  true  that  the  chief  purpose  of  the 
Mosaic  law  was  to  impress  first  upon  the  He- 
brew nation,  and  ultimately  upon  every 

58 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 

human  being,  the  idea  of  an  all-powerful, 
personal  God,  creating  and  sustaining  all 
things,  with  some  dim  apprehension  of  his 
attributes,  and  if  this  is  found  to  be  the  real 
effect  of  that  law  during  all  time,  then  what 
possible  interest  is  there  to  humanity  in  en- 
deavoring to  prove  that  the  account  of  the 
Creation  is  not  geologically  correct  according 
to  our  evanescent  theories  of  geology ;  or  that 
there  are  apparent  contradictions  in  the 
Mosaic  record;  or  that  Moses  did  not  write 
(there  is  no  evidence  that  he  ever  said  he 
did)  the  so-called  Books  of  Moses?  What  if 
there  are  things  in  the  Mosaic  dispensation 
incomprehensible  and  often  horrible  to  us  in 
the  light  of  the  teachings  of  Christ?  Keep  in 
mind  always  the  purpose,  the  enduring  pur- 
pose, of  these  Old  Testament  Scriptures,  and 
if  you  recognize  in  them  something  that  has 
brought  you  out  of  the  darkness  that  was 
upon  the  face  of  the  deep  into  even  such  dim 
light  that  you  may  see  "men  as  trees,  walk- 
ing," then  do  not  be  disturbed  by  the  specu- 
lative theories  and  momentarily  apparent 
wisdom  of  mortal  men  who  may  cross  your 
field  of  vision,  but  look  higher,  beyond  them 
all,  and  in  humility  and  sincerity  thank  God 
for  the  even  imperfect  vision  of  himself  he 
has  seen  fit  to  give  you. 

59 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 

When  we  read  the  Books  of  Moses  we  must 
remember  that  they  relate  to  an  incompletely 
developed  people  upon  whom  the  light  of 
Christianity  had  never  shone  and  who  were 
in  a  kindergarten  stage  of  religious  learning. 
If  we  believe  it  was  the  purpose  of  God  to 
bring  these  people  to  first  recognize  him  as 
a  personal  and  all-powerful  God,  interested 
in  them  and  with  a  knowledge  of  all  their 
trials,  temptations  and  weaknesses,  we  may 
approach  a  feeble  comprehension  of  the 
meaning  of  the  recorded  debates  and  dis- 
cussions between  God  and  Moses,  often  made 
to  result  in  Moses'  showing  God  where  he  was 
in  the  wrong  with  a  repentance  on  God's 
part  and  a  change  in  his  plans  in  dealing 
with  his  creatures!  Might  not  the  effect  of 
the  story  of  these  debates  upon  these  unde- 
veloped child-minds  have  been  intended  to 
increase  their  faith  in  the  personal  God  as 
not  only  having  a  knowledge  of  their  weak- 
nesses, but  as  himself  illustrating  in  a  way 
the  possession  of  this  knowledge? 

Then,  to  prevent  their  straying  too  far  in 
a  wrong  direction,  we  have  frequent  manifes- 
tation of  God's  power, — his  control  of  na- 
ture's laws,  his  stern  punishment  of  wrong- 
doing, his  direction  to  observe  many  and 

60 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 


minute  laws  and  ordinances  and  enforcing 
his  direction.  Here  and  there  throughout 
this  old  Mosaic  record  of  things  that  appear 
to  be  in  themselves  of  little  apparent  endur- 
ing importance,  we  have  brilliant  gems,  the 
radiance  of  which  often  blinds  us  to  their 
seemingly  crude,  harsh  setting.  Such,  for 
example,  are  the  words  found  in  Deut. 
6:4,  5:— 

Hear,  0  Israel:  The  Lord  our  God  is  one  Lord: 
and  thou  shalt  love  the  Lord  thy  God  with  all  thine 
heart,  and  with  all  thy  soul,  and  with  all  thy 
might ; 

and  in  Lev.  19 : 18 : — 

Thou  shalt  love  thy  neighbour  as  thyself; 

gems  so  brilliant  that  our  Saviour,  who  said 
(Matt.  5 : 17)  he  had  not  come  to  destroy  but 
to  fulfill  the  law  and  the  prophets,  chose  them 
for  that  setting  in  which  they  have  become 
a  cherished  possession  of  all  Christian 
nations : — 

Jesus  said  unto  him,  Thou  shalt  love  the  Lord 
thy  God  with  all  thy  heart,  and  with  all  thy  soul, 
and  with  all  thy  mind.  This  is  the  first  and  great 
commandment.  And  the  second  is  like  unto  it, 
Thou  shalt  love  thy  neighbour  as  thyself.  On  these 
two  commandments  hang  all  the  law  and  the 
prophets  (Matt.  22:37-40). 

61 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


And  like  unto  it  also  is  that  other  com- 
mandment of  Christ: — 

Therefore  all  things  whatsoever  ye  would  that 
men  should  do  to  you,  do  ye  even  so  to  them:  for 
this  is  the  law  and  the  prophets  (Matt.  7: 12). 

The  account  of  the  deluge  (Gen.  7:22)  in 
which  "all  in  whose  nostrils  was  the  breath 
of  life,  of  all  that  was  in  the  dry  land,  died," 
will  stand  for  all  time  as  an  illustration  of 
the  power  of  God  and  as  a  warning-  that  the 
limit  of  God's  endurance  can  be  passed  by  his 
disobedient  creatures,  a  fearful  day  of  wrath 
following.  The  ten  plagues  of  Egypt  will 
always  serve  as  another  warning  of  the  fear- 
ful consequences  of  disobedience  and  of  the 
limitless  power  of  God.  The  Ten  Command- 
ments are  found  in  these  books  relating  to 
Moses,  commandments  upon  the  observance 
of  which  depends  the  comfort  and  safety  of 
our  modem  community  life,  and  which  estab- 
lished the  fundamental  principles  still  gov- 
erning all  important  legislation  for  com- 
munity protection. 

As  is  elsewhere  herein  stated,  the  canon  of 
the  Old  Testament  Scriptures  appears  to  have 
been  a  matter  of  growth  and  general  accept- 
ance, never  the  result  of  the  formal  action 
of  any  universally  acknowledged  supreme 
authority  of  any  early  Christian  church  or 

62 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 


churches.  May  it  not  have  been  divinely 
ordered  that  this  canon  may  change  and 
develop  with  the  passing  centuries,  as  do  all 
other  things?  Is  it  not  a  fact  that  the  Old 
Testament  Scriptures  would  be  more  gener- 
ally and  usefully  read  to-day  if  relieved  from 
the  burden  of  the  record  of  old  laws,  ordin- 
ances, chronology,  and  customs  that  appear 
to  have  fulfilled  their  purpose  and  to  be  of  no 
present  day  interest  except  such  as  attaches 
to  any  other  ancient  history?  With  an  estab- 
lished and  universally  acceptable  unity  in 
Christian  effort,  it  would  appear  to  be  pos- 
sible to  make  from  the  Old  Testament  Scrip- 
tures a  compilation  of  so  much  thereof  as 
would  relate  only  to  its  message  and  purpose 
of  present  and  enduring  importance  to  the  1 
human  race.  All  else  that  it  contains  would 
be  reverently  preserved  as  valuable  for  his- 
torical reference  by  all  who  might  thereafter 
desire  to  study  its  contents.  Is  there  not  a 
present  danger  that  the  portions  of  the  record 
representing  closed  incidents  will  envelop  and 
obscure  the  lessons  it  contains  that  are  of 
enduring  importance  to  all  people?  These 
lessons  are  of  undying  interest  to  humanity 
on  its  journey  from  the  cradle  to  the  grave. 
The  impressions  they  make  upon  the  human 
mind  are  in  no  way  dependent  upon  their 

63 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


authorship : — upon  whether  Job  was  an  imag- 
inary or  a  real  character,  for  example;  or 
whether  a  real  Jonah  was  swallowed  by  a 
real  whale.  The  settings  of  the  stories 
challenge  attention,  and  the  attention  is  re- 
warded by  impressions  of  inestimable  value 
and  importance.  It  is  interesting  to  note  as 
a  curious  fact  that  Methuselah,  the  oldest 
man  of  whom  we  have  any  Bible  record,  who 
lived  nine  hundred  and  sixty-nine  years,  ap- 
pears to  have  died  in  the  year  of  the  flood. 
Was  he  one  of  the  men  of  whom  it  is  said : 
"God  saw  that  the  wickedness  of  man  was 
great  in  the  earth,  and  that  every  imagination 
of  the  thoughts  of  his  heart  was  only  evil  con- 
tinually" (Gen.  6:5)? 

There  are  some  scholarly  men  who  appear 
to  be  unable  to  comprehend  the  possibility  of 
the  existence  of  anything  beyond  the  range 
of  their  own  vision.  To  them  the  deluge,  all 
of  the  miracles  and  much  else  of  which  the 
Bible  tells  for  the  aid  and  comfort  of  human- 
ity, are  meaningless  fables.  Things  they  can- 
not themselves  do  or  account  for  by  the  laws 
of  nature  of  which  they  have  knowledge,  are 
not,  they  assert,  to  be  believed.  The  prac- 
tical effect  is  to  ask  their  fellow-men  to  be- 
lieve or  disbelieve  only  what  they  alone  shall 
decide  can  or  cannot  be !   We  need  pay  small 

64 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 


attention  to  any  such  but  rather  rely  upon 
what  -we  know  the  Bible  story  has  been  to  us 
in  time  of  trial,  and  not  be  disturbed  because 
it  brought  no  such  comfort  to  others  who 
failed  to  seek  rightly.  Nothing  is  stated  any- 
where in  the  Bible  that  any  sane  man  dare 
assert  is  beyond  the  power  of  God;  nor  dare 
any  one  pretend  to  possess  authority  or 
knowledge  justifying  the  assertion  that  God 
may  only  exercise  his  power  within  the  limi- 
tations of  what  we  call  natural  laws,  as  they 
are  known  to  fallible  human  beings.  Our 
God  is  greater  than  his  creatures,  whether 
they  are  human  beings  or  the  laws  he  has 
established  for  their  government. 

The  God  who,  for  purposes  of  his  own, 
caused  to  be  given  to  the  human  race  the  ' 
Scriptures  of  the  Old  and  New  Testament, 
surely  can  and  probably  will  give  to  future 
generations  when  the  time  is  ripe,  further 
revelations  of  his  will  and  purposes.  The 
law  of  life,  whether  secular  or  religious,  is 
a  law  of  development.  As  the  Creator  brings 
new  needs  to  the  consciousness  of  his  develop- 
ing people  he  will  also  provide  the  supply 
for  these  needs. 

How  We  Got  Our  Bible  (J.  Pateraon  Smyth,  B.D.,  LL.D.), 
contains  facta  of  interest,  and  ita  usefulneas  is  here  grate- 
fully acknowledged. 

6  65 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 


r 

CHAPTER  V 

SOME  AIDS  TO  FAITH 

We  are  so  constituted  that  few  if  any  in- 
telligent persons  can  consider  any  subject  of 
importance  with  entirely  unprejudiced  minds. 
Whether  consciously  or  not,  we  approach 
such  consideration  predisposed  to  believe  or 
to  disbelieve,  and,  being  so  predisposed,  our 
inclination  is  to  attach  undue  importance  to 
whatever  favors  the  conclusions  we  desire  to 
accept  and  to  reject  or  belittle  the  importance 
of  everything  that  tends  toward  a  contrary 
view. 

The  greatest  of  all  aids  to  faith  is  a  wish 
to  believe.  This  inborn  germ  of  desire  may 
be  nourished  or  neglected,  developed  or  sup- 
pressed, reach  a  vigorous  maturity  or  droop 
and  die.  If  developed  so  that  it  becomes 
living,  forceful  longing,  we  will  then  experi- 
ence purpose  to  satisfy  it.  There  will  be 
a  patient,  persistent  search  after  the  knowl- 

66 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 


edge  essential  to  the  desired  belief.  How 
shall  this  search  proceed  on  intelligent  lines? 

The  first  necessity  of  faith  in  anything  is 
a  knowledge  of  what  you  are  expected  to 
believe.  "How  shall  they  believe  in  him  of 
whom  they  have  not  heard?"  (Rom.  10: 14.) 
As  has  been  hereinbefore  stated,  in  matters 
religious  this  knowledge  should  first  come 
to  u.s  early  in  life  and  from  those  then  best 
able  to  impart  it ;  the  presumption  is  that  such 
teachers  should  be  found  in  our  homes  or  in 
that  one  of  the  existing  church  organizations 
with  which  our  parents,  members  of  our  fam- 
ily circle  and  our  friends  are  associated.  Re- 
ligious knowledge  should  not  be  confined  to 
a  blind  acceptance  of  what  is  told  us  by 
others.  It  involves  personal  effort  on  our 
part  such  as  is  represented  by  an  intelligent, 
patient  striving  to  find  God  the  Creator  in 
his  works,  of  which  we  are  a  part,  and  in 
a  thoughtful  searching  of  the  Scriptures  that 
we  may  thus  learn  at  the  fountain  head  the 
story  they  tell  and  what  it  possesses  of  value 
to  us.  We  will  find  much  in  the  Scriptures 
that  will  seem  harsh  and  hard  to  be  under- 
stood, but  persistent  effort  on  our  part  will 
develop  for  each  of  us  all  that  it  is  necessary 
for  us  to  know  that  we  may  lead  right  lives 

67 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


and  occupy  a  right  relation  to  **our  Father 
which  art  in  heaven ' '  and  to  our  fellow-men. 
A  search  of  the  Scriptures  in  sincerity  and 
humility,  with  a  desire  to  believe,  is  a  great 
aid  to  faith. 

Much  has  been  written  about  the  best  way 
to  proceed  to  intelligently  search  the  Scrip- 
tures, and  what  one  may  expect  as  the  reward 
of  such  a  search.  Too  much  of  such  writing 
has  had  reference  to  the  needs  of  the  ad- 
vanced scholar,  the  critical  Bible  student  and 
the  literary  explorer.  Too  little  of  it  has 
had  reference  to  the  wants  of  the  plain  people. 

In  an  interesting  and  useful  little  book  by 
Albert  J.  Lyman,  D.D.,  entitled  A  Plain 
Man's  WorTiing  View  of  Biblical  Inspiration, 
the  author  replies  to  a  query  as  to  how  one 
"can  reasonably  regard  the  Bible  as  an  in- 
spired and  trustworthy  guide  in  life,  without 
waiting  to  settle  all  the  critical  questions." 
He  finds  in  the  Bible  itself  evidence  of  its 
claim  upon  our  faith  as  a  trustworthy  guide 
in  life,  and  he  states  in  summary  and  in 
ascending  steps  the  character  of  this  internal 
and  convincing  evidence  as  follows : — 

1  Occasional  very  high  literary  inspiration. 

2  General  supremely  high  moral  inspiration. 

3  Many   clearly   demonstrable    instances  and 

68 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 


flashes  of  apparently  superhuman  spiritual  inspira- 
tion. 

4  These  turret-top  lights  so  distributed  and  so 
commanding  as  to  be  largely  explanatory  of  the 
remainder  of  Scripture,  so  that  a  sane,  free  soul 
can  walk  in  the  light  of  such  a  Book,  can  fight  in 
the  glory  of  such  a  Book,  can  die  in  the  peace  of 
such  a  Book,  and  at  the  end  of  all  know  that  he  has 
done  his  whitest  and  his  best. 

Charles  Reade,  the  novelist,  makes  a  valua- 
ble contribution  to  our  "Aids  to  Faith"  in  a 
small  book  of  about  one  hundred  pages  on 
Bible  Characters,  which  he  opens  with  a 
declaration  that '  *  the  characters  in  Scripture 

are  a  literary  marvel  A  part  of 

its  truth,  and  aids  to  reasonable  faith  in  a 
matter  where  faith  is  a  boon  and  disbelief  a 
calamity";  and  he  points  out,  as  an  experi- 
enced writer,  that  "it  is  very  hard  to  write 
characters  in  one  country  to  be  popular  in 

every  land  and  age  Everlasting 

characters  in  a  few  words,  a  bare  record  of 
great  things  said  and  done." 

In  support  of  his  position  Mr.  Reade  sub- 
mits these  truths  to  be  taken  in  conjunc- 
tion : — 

1  Moderate  excellence  in  writing  is  geographical ; 
loses  fifty  per  cent,  in  human  esteem  in  crossing  a 
channel  or  frontier. 

2  Translation  lowers  it  ten  per  cent. 

.  69 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


3  But  when  you  carry  into  the  West  a  translation 
of  a  work  the  East  admires  ever  so  much,  ten  to  one 
it  will  miss  the  Western  mind.  Eastern  music  is  a 
dreamy  noise  to  a  Western  ear,  but  one  degree  be- 
yond the  sweet,  illoo^ieal  wail  of  an  ^olian  harp. 
Eastern  poetry  is  to  the  Western  a  glue  of  honeyed 
words,  a  tinkling  cymbal,  or  a  drowsy  chime.  The 
sacred  Koran,  the  Bible  of  a  hundred  million 
Orientals,  is  to  your  Anglo-Saxon  the  weakest  twad- 
dle that  ever  drivelled  from  a  human  skull.  It  does 
not  shock  an  Occidental  Christian,  or  rouse  his  theo- 
logical ire.  It  is  a  mild  emetic  to  his  understand- 
ing, and  there's  an  end  of  it. 

4  The  world  is  a  very  large  place;  Palestine  is 
a  small  province  in  the  East. 

5  What  the  whole  world  outside  Palestine  could 
very  seldom  do  at  all,  this  petty  province  did  on 
a  very  large  scale.  About  seventeen  writers,  all 
Israelites,  some  of  them  with  what  would  nowadays 
be  called  a  little  learning,  some  without,  some  writ- 
ing in  Hebrew,  some  in  Greek,  all  achieved  one 
wonder.  They  sat  down  to  record  great  deeds  done, 
and  great  words  spoken  in  Egypt,  Syria,  Mesopo- 
tamia and  Palestine,  which  districts  united  are  but 
a  slice  of  the  East,  and  they  told  them  wondrous 
briefly,  yet  so  that  immortal  and  worldwide  charac- 
ters rise  like  exhalations  from  the  record.  Written 
in  the  East,  these  characters  live  forever  in  the 
West;  written  in  one  province,  they  pervade  the 
world ;  penned  in  rude  times,  they  are  prized  more 
and  more  as  civilization  advances;  products  of  an- 
tiquity, they  come  home  to  the  business  and  bosoms 
of  men,  women,  and  children  in  modern  days. 
Then,  is  it  any  exaggeration  to  say  that  the  charac- 
ters of  Scriptures  are  a  marvel  of  the  mind  ? 

70 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 


Another  of  the  interesting  small  books  is, 
Eoiu  to  Read  the  Bible,  by  Walter  F.  Adeney, 
M.A.,  D.D.  While  the  scholarly  study  this 
book  outlines  as  desirable,  may  be  beyond  the 
opportunities  of  the  mass  of  even  the  so- 
called  educated  people,  the  book  contains 
many  suggestions  of  value  and  will  repay  a 
reading. 

AVe  should  try  to  understand  something 
of  the  organized  religious  effort  with  which 
we  come  in  contact,  of  its  origin,  history  and 
results.  From  the  time  when  two  people  first 
appeared  on  the  face  of  the  earth  there  must 
have  been  what  we  call  a  division  of  labor 
and  leadership.  Each  individual  would  nat- 
urally gravitate  toward  the  performance  of 
the  share  of  the  com.mon  work  for  which  he 
was  best  fitted  and  the  strongest  character 
in  the  resulting  group  would  rule.  The  in- 
terdependence growing  out  of  this  natural 
division  of  labor  and  the  resulting  call  for 
leadership,  are  the  foundation  of  all  com- 
munity life.  In  matters  religious  we  find, 
from  the  early  Bible  record,  the  Lord  setting 
apart  Aaron  and  his  sons  as  "an  everlasting 
priesthood  throughout  their  generations" 
(Ex.  40:15).  Here  was  the  relicrious  group 
and  its  leadership.    And  the  tribe  of  Levi 

71 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 

was  set  apart  to  minister  unto  Aaron.  The 
tribe  of  Levi,  devoted  to  the  care  of  the  re- 
ligious sacrifices,  sacraments  and  services, 
received  tithes  for  their  support,  by  command 
of  the  Lord.  So  onward  throughout  the  Old 
Testament  period  we  find  this  division  of 
labor,  ministry  and  leadership.  With  the 
opening  of  the  New  Testament  dispensation 
we  still  have  the  division  of  labor,  but  we 
pass  to  a  vastly  higher  order  of  ministry  and 
leadership.  Christ  is  the  leader.  His 
apostles  and  believing  people  are  his  minis- 
try. Love  replaces  fear  on  the  part  of  the 
people  toward  the  leader.  These  then  set 
apart  as  a  band  of  believers  devoted  to  telling 
the  Christian  story  and  inducing  belief  in 
others,  have  been  followed  during  the  centur- 
ies by  generation  after  generation  of  succes- 
sors in  office  whose  duty  it  has  been  to  per- 
form like  services.  Thus  have  developed  the 
various  church  organizations  with  ministers 
and  leaders.  The  division  of  labor  method 
has  allotted  special  work  to  these  church  or- 
ganizations. It  is  theirs  to  preserve  the  con- 
tinuity of  the  faith  and  records  and  to  provide 
for  the  dissemination  of  their  belief,  as  well 
as  to  care  for  the  services,  sacraments  and 
duties  it  enjoins.    Those  attracted  by  one  or 

72 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 


another  of  the  church  organizations  enlist 
under  its  company  banner  for  the  common 
service.  They  become  soldiers  of  the  Cross. 
It  is  because  of  all  this  that,  when  we  say, 
"How  shall  I  believe  in  Him  of  whom  I  have 
not  heard"  and  sincerely  desire  to  hear,  we 
naturally  turn  first  to  the  churches  as  the 
places  where  we  may  expect  to  hear  the  story. 
We  should  not  abandon  the  effort  to  hear, 
understand,  believe,  until  we  have  tried  them 
all.  We  should  not  be  troubled  because  of 
the  name  by  which  any  particular  church  is 
called,  but  should  seek  until  we  find  the  one 
that  carries  a  message  of  faith  for  us — not 
necessarily  for  some  one  else,  but  for  each  of 
us  personally.  The  important  matter  is  that 
we  shall  each  find  the  faith  we  need  and  shall 
so  surely  find  it  that  it  will  be  evident  in  our 
daily  lives  and  in  our  continuing  desire  to  tell 
the  wonderful  story  to  others.  We  should 
seek  this  faith  and  the  confirmation  of  it,  not 
in  the  churches  alone,  important  as  they  are 
to  a  continuity  of  the  faith,  but  we  should 
look  for  every  aid  to  faith  that  may 
strengthen  and  help  us. 

A  desire  to  believe  is  stimulated  and  en- 
couraged by  a  consideration  of  the  evidences 
of  faith  found  in  the  record  of  completed 

73 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 

lives,  or  in  the  lives  of  those  still  in  being 
and  known  to  us.  We  take  but  little  interest 
in  professions  of  faith  unless  we  can  trace 
their  results  in  the  daily  lives  and  works  of 
the  professors.  Let  us  briefly  refer  to  some 
of  the  evidences  of  faith  that  are  of  Bible 
record.  In  the  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews  (ch. 
11:1)  we  find  our  best  definition  of  faith, — 
"The  substance  of  things  hoped  for,  the  evi- 
dence of  things  not  seen";  and  we  are  told 
that  "by  it  the  elders  obtained  a  good  re- 
port." Then  follows  that  record  in  epitome 
of  the  faith  of  the  centuries  from  the  Crea- 
tion, with  its  individual  reference  to  practi- 
cally every  one  of  the  notable  characters  of 
the  Old  Testament  Scriptures.  It  is  a  record 
that  cannot  fail  strongly  to  impress  every 
reverent  reader.  Its  simplicity,  brevity  and 
comprehensiveness  are  characteristic  of  and 
peculiar  to  the  Holy  Scriptures. 

Next  hear  what  the  greatest  of  the  apostles 
tells  us  in  evidence  of  his  faith : 

In  labours  more  abundant,  in  stripes  above  meas- 
ure, in  prisons  more  frequent,  in  deaths  oft.  Of 
the  Jews  five  times  received  I  forty  sti'ipes  save  one. 
Thrice  was  I  beaten  with  rods,  once  was  I  stoned, 
thrice  I  suffered  shipwreck,  a  ni^ht  and  a  day  I 
have  been  in  the  deep;  in  journeyings  often,  in 
perils  of  waters,  in  perils  of  robbers,  in  perils  by 

74 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 


mine  own  countrymen,  in  perils  by  the  heathen,  in 
perils  in  the  city,  in  perils  in  the  wilderness,  in 
perils  in  the  sea,  in  perils  among  false  brethren; 
in  Aveariness  and  painfulness,  in  watchings  often, 
in  hunger  and  thirst,  in  fastings  often,  in  cold  and 
nakedness.  Beside  those  things  that  are  without, 
that  which  cometh  upon  me  daily,  the  care  of  all 
the  churches.  Who  is  weak,  and  I  am  not  weak? 
who  is  offended,  and  I  burn  not?"  (II  Cor.  11: 
23-29.) 

What  of  this  record  of  evidences  of  faith 
through  suffering?  Can  we  live  through  all 
this  in  imagination  and  fail  to  be  impressed 
with  the  sincerity  and  strength  of  the  faith 
of  Paul?  Does  it  not  prove  an  aid  to  our 
faith?  The  sacred  history  is  full  of  records 
of  similar  lives  of  devoted  consecration. 

During  the  early  centuries  of  our  era  we 
find  this  faith  sustaining  the  apostles,  their 
associated  believers  and  followers,  through 
painful  days,  years,  lives  of  suffering  and 
sorrow,  and  in  their  deaths  of  martyrdom. 

Consider  the  Christian  martyrs  of  all  the 
ages !  How  we  suffer  with  them  as  we  read 
their  simple  stories  of  heroic  sacrifice  for 
their  faith!  Does  not  a  knowledge  of  such 
experiences  increase  our  desire  to  believe, 
and  so  prove  an  aid  to  our  faith? 

There  is  another  class  of  whom  we  read  in 
history  but  to  the  record  of  whose  lives  we 

75 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 

seldom  go  for  comfort  or  aid  to  our  halting 
faith — those  who  persecuted  these  Christian 
martyrs,  who  followed  them  often  with  a 
cruel  treachery  and  hypocrisy,  haling  them  to 
their  deaths  by  ax  or  fagot.  From  all  such 
records  we  incline  to  shrink.  But  may  not 
even  these  seemingly  inhuman  men  and  wo- 
men have  left  in  their  lives  evidences  of  faith 
that  may  be  helpful  to  us  ?  Do  we  ever  think 
of  the  motive  that  inspired  this  persecution 
of  all  who  differed  in  religious  belief?  These 
men  and  women  were  not  of  necessity  cruel 
by  nature.  They  probably  did  not  cause  their 
fellow-creatures  to  suffer  merely  that  they 
might  gloat  over  their  sufferings.  May  not 
even  their  inhumanities  have  been  evidences 
of  their  faith,  mistaken  though  it  was — faith 
for  which  they  set  aside  their  natural,  human 
instincts  and  became  for  the  time,  as  we  now 
see  them,  mere  savage  brutes  ?  Does  not  the 
aggregation  of  the  evidences  of  even  this  low 
kind  of  faith  illustrate  again  the  hold  that 
faith  has  had  upon  minds  of  every  sort 
through  all  the  ages?  They  believed  it  was 
the  Christian  faith,  God  help  them !  And  so 
as  we  probe  deeper  and  deeper  for  evidences 
of  faith  in  the  religion  of  Christ  we  must 
surely  find,  in  what  our  search  will  reveal, 
additional  and  cumulative  aids  to  our  faith. 

76 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 


Another  great  aid  to  faith  is  prayer.  Not 
merely  ''saying"  or  "reading  prayers,"  but, 
whether  the  prayers  are  extemporary  or  litur- 
gical, really  praying  with  all  the  heart  and 
soul,  as  one  filled  with  a  great  desire  and 
knowing  where  to  seek  for  its  fulfillment; 
praying  so  that  we  may  receive  the  answer 
promised  by  our  Saviour  when  he  said,  "And 
all  things,  whatsoever  ye  shall  ask  in  prayer, 
believing,  ye  shall  receive"  (Matt.  21:22); 
praying  so  as  to  meet  the  conditions  James 
called  for  when  he  said,  "The  effectual  fer- 
vent prayer  of  ia  righteous  man  availeth 
much"  (James  5: 16) ;  praying  as  to  a  loving 
father. 

The  development  of  the  human  conception 
of  God  is  a  most  interesting  study.  First 
we  have  an  awesome,  incorporeal  power  pres- 
ent everywhere  in  nature,  and  feared.  Next 
we  see,  in  the  opening  verses  of  our  Bible, 
God  as  a  Spirit,  moving  in  fearful  might 
through  the  darkness  that  was  upon  the  face 
of  the  waters.  Then  we  find  a  creative  God, 
one  God,  revealing  himself  through  certain 
of  his  attributes ;  a  God  of  power,  of  minute 
laws  and  observances;  a  God  to  be  feared 
and  obeyed. 

As  the  Bible  story  develops  and  the  time  of 
77 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


Christ  arrives,  the  curtain  is  drawn  further 
aside,  and  we  see  God  as  a  loving  Father. 
Still  much  of  darkness  and  mystery,  much 
that  passes  human  comprehension;  but 
through  all  the  mist  and  the  doubt  there 
comes  to  us  in  mercy  a  vision  of  God  as  a 
loving  Father,  with  his  Son,  J esus  Christ,  as 
our  brother;  a  family  relation!  To  sustain 
this  family  relation  of  children  to  a  father, 
we  must  be  able  to  communicate  with  the 
Father.  This  we  do  through  the  medium  of 
prayer.  We  go  to  our  Father  in  prayer ;  he 
comes  to  us  in  loving,  daily  care  of  ourselves 
and  those  dear  to  us.  Everything  we  have 
we  owe  to  him. 

And  how  can  we  pray  acceptably  to  this 
great  God  of  mystery  and  might,  our  Father? 
Open  your  Bible  and  turn  to  Matt.  6 : 5-15 
and  read: — 

And  when  thou  pray  est,  thou  shalt  not  be  as  the 
hypocrites  are:  for  they  love  to  pray  standing  in 
the  synagogues  and  in  the  comers  of  the  streets, 
that  they  may  be  seen  of  men.  Verily  I  say  unto 
you,  They  have  their  reward.  But  thou,  when 
thou  prayest,  enter  into  thy  closet,  and  when  thou 
hast  shut  thy  door,  pray  to  thy  Father  which  is 
in  secret;  and  thy  Father  which  seeth  in  secret 
shall  reward  thee  openly.  But  when  ye  pray,  use 
not  vain  repetitions,  as  the  heathen  do;  for  they 
think  that  they  shall  be  heard  for  their  much  speak- 

78 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 


ing.  Be  not  ye  therefore  like  unto  them ;  for  your 
Father  knoweth  what  things  ye  have  need  of,  be- 
fore ye  ask  him.  After  this  manner  therefore  pray 
ye:  Our  Father  which  art  in  heaven,  Hallowed  be 
thy  name.  Thy  kingdom  come.  Thy  will  be  done 
in  earth,  as  it  is  in  heaven.  Give  us  this  day  our 
daily  bread.  And  forgive  us  our  debts,  as  we  for- 
give our  debtors.  And  lead  us  not  into  temptation, 
but  deliver  us  from  evil :  For  thine  is  the  kingdom, 
and  the  power,  and  the  glory,  for  ever.  Amen. 
For  if  ye  forgive  men  their  trespasses,  your  heav- 
enly Father  will  also  forgive  you :  but  if  ye  forgive 
not  men  their  trespasses,  neither  will  your  Father 
forgive  your  trespasses. 

Then  turn  to  Luke  11 : 1-4  and  read : — 

One  of  his  disciples  said  unto  him.  Lord,  teach 
us  to  pray,  as  John  also  taught  his  disciples.  And 
he  said  unto  them.  When  ye  pray,  say,  Our  Father 
which  art  in  heaven.  Hallowed  be  thy  name.  Thy 
kingdom  come.  Thy  will  be  done,  as  in  heaven,  so 
in  earth.  Give  us  day  by  day  our  daily  bread. 
And  forgive  us  our  sins;  for  we  also  forgive  every 
one  that  is  indebted  to  us.  And  lead  us  not  into 
temptation;  but  deliver  us  from  evil. 

Have  we  ever  carefully  considered  and 
striven  to  comprehend  the  simplicity,  scope 
and  beauty  of  this  prayer?  Have  we  ever 
asked  ourselves  to  whom  we  refer  when  we 
I  say  "our"  throughout  this  prayer?  Let  us 
ask  some  of  those  with  whom  we  come  in 
contact  exactly  whom  they  have  in  mind  when 

79 

I 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 

they  ask  forgiveness  for  "our"  trespasses. 
Have  we  ever  individually  offered  this  as  a 
personal  prayer,  saying,  "My  Father  .  .  . 
forgive  me  my  trespasses"?  Christ  gave 
the  prayer  to  his  disciples  in  response  to 
their  united  request,  "Lord,  teach  us  to 
pray" — to  them  as  a  small  and  united  band 
praying  together.  To  them  he  said,  "Our 
Father";  to  an  individual  appeal  he  would 
doubtless  have  said,  "Pray,  My  Father." 
This  prayer  of  Christianity  opens  with  the 
recognition  of  the  Fatherhood  of  God,  the 
reverence  due  to  him,  and  the  petition  that  all 
power  may  be  his.  It  closes  with  the  recogni- 
tion that  all  power  now  is  his.  And  what  do 
we  ask  of  him? 

First:         Give  Present 
Second:       Forgive  Past 
Third:        Deliver  Future 

The  prayer  for  forgiveness  alone  is  condi- 
tional— "as  we  forgive  our  debtors."  Are 
we  not  too  prone  to  forget  this  condition? 
too  ready  to  ask  for  and  expect  forgiveness 
for  ourselves?  too  slow  and  thoughtless  about 
our  duty  to  forgive  o.thers?  It  should  be  an 
aid  to  our  faith  if  we  make  it  the  rule  of  our 
lives  to  forgive  at  the  close  of  each  day  all 

80 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 


who  have  trespassed  against  us  during  the 
day,  harboring  no  unkind  thought  toward 
any;  and  then  we  may  bow  in  humility  and 
truth,  seeking  God's  forgiveness  for  our- 
selves. Our  pressing  need  is  for  God's  pres- 
ent care ;  next  for  forgiveness  as  to  the  past, 
and  then,  should  we  live  to  see  the  future,  for 
guidance  and  deliverance. 

Our  Saviour  gave  us  another  example  of  a 
form  of  prayer  effective  and  acceptable  to 
God.  Read  what  is  said  about  it  in  Luke 
18 : 10-14.  The  Pharisee  who  in  the  parable 
stood  and  prayed  with  himself,  *  *  God,  I  thank 
thee,  that  I  am  not  as  other  men  are,"  etc., 
has  still  many  imitators.  Our  Saviour  had 
no  word  of  approval  for  his  prayer.  "When, 
however,  the  poor  publican  ''would  not  lift  up 
so  much  as  his  eyes  unto  heaven,  but  smote 
upon  his  breast,  saying,  God  be  merciful  to 
ma  a  sinner,"  our  Saviour  said,  ''I  tell  you, 
this  man  went  down  to  his  house  justified," 
etc.  We  will  do  well  to  remember  all  this 
and  let  our  good  Lord  hear  from  each  of  us 
the  humble  prayer,  "God  be  merciful  to  me  a 
sinner,"  rather  than  "God,  I  thank  thee,  I 
am  not  as  other  men  are."  "We  will  find  in 
such  prayer  an  aid  to  our  faith. 

Our  Saviour  illustrated  in  these  beautifully 
«  81 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 

simple  and  concise  prayers,  as  well  as  in  all 
his  recorded  utterances,  what  he  meant  when 
he  said,  "Use  not  vain  repetitions."  May 
not  the  failure  to  observe  this  command  be 
responsible  for  much  of  the  lack  of  interest 
and  the  irreligion  that  is  too  plainly  apparent 
to-day  throughout  Christendom!  Let  us  ex- 
amine our  books  of  prayer,  service  and 
praise,  test  the  sincerity  of  their  statements 
as  applied  to  ourselves,  and  learn  whether 
they  do  or  do  not  suggest  that  those  who  are 
responsible  for  them  appear  to  believe  "as 
the  heathen  do  ...  .  that  they  shall  be 
heard  for  their  much  speaking."  Compare 
the  lessons  of  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount  with 
the  lessons  found  in  any  like  number  of  words 
spoken  or  written  by  any  human  being  of 
whom  there  is  any  reliable  record.  There  is 
no  "vain  repetition"  in  that  sermon.  May 
not  some  of  the  indifference  and  lack  of  faith 
that  is  complained  of  disappear  if  those  in 
authority  will  "use  not  vain  repetitions,"  but 
revise  their  books  of  and  customs  in  prayer 
and  praise,  and  prepare  their  sermons,  upon 
the  basis  of  sincerity  and  of  this  divine  com- 
mand? Valuable  time  may  thus  be  saved  to 
be  used  by  preachers  and  people  in  carrying 
the  story  of  what  they  have  learned  to  all 

82 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 


who  have  not  yet  heard  it,  each  in  turn  to  be- 
come a  teacher  of  others?  This  was  the 
method  of  Christ,  his  apostles  and  his  early 
followers.  As  is  so  beautifully  said  in  Mont- 
gomery's hymn : — 

Prayer  is  the  burden  of  a  sigh, 

The  falling  of  a  tear, 
The  upward  glancing  of  an  eye 

When  none  but  God  is  near. 

Lord,  teach  us  how  to  pray  in  faith,  sincerity 
and  truth! 

There  will  always  be  aid  to  faith  found  in 
simple  and  sincere  prayer  which  brings  us 
in  direct  communion  with  God  as  a  loving 
Father  filled  with  an  intelligent  sympathy  for 
us  and  with  a  purpose  to  aid  us  in  our  hours 
of  doubt,  sin  and  sorrow.  We  sometimes  find 
it  hard  to  see  the  hand  of  a  loving  Father  in 
troubles  that  come  upon  us.  "We  may  even 
find  ourselves  wondering  whether  it  can  be 
possible  that  God  finds  pleasure  in  causing 
or  permitting  pain  to  come  upon  his  people. 
The  Book  of  Job  may  suggest  to  the  casual 
reader  such  a  possibility.  In  our  relation 
to  God  there  is  much  of  mystcr^',  much  that 
is  at  present  beyond  human  comprehension, 
but  one  of  the  facts  we  may  find  it  profitable 
to  remember  is  that  it  was  God  who  in  creat- 

83 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


ing  the  mother  and  child  implanted  in  the 
woman  the  wonderful  instinct  of  motherhood 
that  is  the  best  illustration  we  have  of  a  love 
at  once  protective  and  self-sacrificing,  a  love 
that  passeth  knowledge.  It  is  to  the  God 
who  created  us  that  we  owe  every  kindly,  self- 
sacrificing  thought  that  has  ever  found  ex- 
pression in  our  daily  lives  in  word  or  deeil. 
A  God  bestowing  such  gifts  upon  his  crea- 
tures cannot  find  pleasure  in  their  sufferings. 

Another  important  aid  to  faith  will  be 
found  in  a  consistent  attitude  of  respect  that 
should  develop  into  reverence  for  our  vener- 
able old  Bible,  Surely  its  influence  upon 
mankind  during  thousands  of  years  entitles 
it  to  a  respectful  hearing.  Unfortunately 
this  fact  is  too  often  lost  sight  of  in  the 
laugh  that  follows  a  foolish  exhibition  of 
would-be  wit,  based  upon  a  distortion  or  mis- 
use of  some  of  its  texts  or  lessons.  No  one 
can  hope  seriously  to  believe  in  any  religious 
word  or  work  that  one  aids  in  endeavoring  to 
turn  to  ridicule. 

In  summary,  the  aids  to  faith  here  referred 
to  are : — 

1  A  desire  to  believe,  which  may  be  devel- 
oped or  suppressed  as  we  shall  elect. 

2  Looking  first  to  church  organizations  for 
the  Bible  story. 

84 


FAITH— THE  FOUNDATION 


3  Searching  the  Scriptures  for  ourselves, 
in  sincerity  and  truth. 

4  Seeking  evidences  of  faith  in  the  lives  of 
others. 

5  Sincere  prayer,  especially  the  Lord's 
Prayer. 

6  Maintaining  always  an  attitude  of  re- 
spect toward  the  Bible. 


PART  II 
CREEDS— FAITH  IN  WORDS 


CREEDS— FAITH  IN  WORDS 


r 

CHAPTER  VI 

CREEDS 

There  can  be  no  religion  without  a  creed, 
a  belief  in  something  is  an  essential,  funda- 
mental need  of  every  religion.  There  is  no 
satisfactory  method  of  communicating  our 
belief  except  in  language.  When  belief  is 
expressed  in  words  it  constitutes  a  creed. 
It  may  be  the  creed  of  an  individual  evolved 
from  his  own  religious  thouglit  or  experience. 
It  may  be  a  creed  common  to  two  or  more 
individuals  who  find  in  it  a  bond  of  religious 
union.  It  may  be  a  creed  established  in  the 
past  as  the  result  of  earnest  search  for  the 
truth  on  the  part  of  one  or  more  groups  of 
individuals  and  made,  by  mutual  consent,  the 
basis  of  a  definite  religious  organization. 
Wrhen  an  organization  has  been  thus  estab- 
lished, the  creed  serves  to  explain  exactly 
what  is  believed  when  other  individuals  are 
attracted  by  and  desire  to  become  a  part  of 

89 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


such  organization.  Men  may,  as  is  the  case 
in  some  religious  bodies,  have  a  wide  range 
of  individual  freedom  of  belief  within  the 
organization,  but  they  cannot  escape  the 
necessity  for  believing  something,  and  that 
something  when  expressed  in  language  con- 
stitutes a  creed. 

It  is  impossible  to  avoid  a  feeling  of  sym- 
pathy for  those  who  are  pronounced  in  their 
disbelief  in  the  necessity  for  creeds  when  one 
remembers  how  impossible  it  is  for  the  mass 
of  the  people  to  comprehend  in  the  least  de- 
gree much  that  some  church  organizations  re- 
quire their  adherents  to  say  they  believe. 
Still,  with  every  sympathetic  appreciation 
and  allowance  for  this  feeling,  the  fact  re- 
mains that  there  can  be  no  religion  without 
a  creed. 

A  creed  has  been  defined  as  "a  definite 
summary  of  what  is  believed"  and  as  "a 
formal  summary  of  fundamental  points  of 
religious  belief";  as  *'an  authoritative  state- 
ment of  doctrine  on  points  held  to  be  vital, 
usually  representing  the  views  of  a  religious 
body";  and  also  as  "a  confession  of  faith 
for  public  use,  especially  one  which  is  brief 
and  comprehensive.  In  the  Protestant  sys- 
tem the  creed  is  not  coordinate  with,  but 
always  subordinate  to,  the  Bible." 

90 


CREEDS— FAITH  IN  WORDS 


The  original  purpose  of  creeds  and  the 
useful  period  of  their  authoritative  continu- 
ance, was  well  stated  by  Cyril  (fourth  cen- 
tury) ,  when  he  wrote : — 

For  since  all  cannot  read  the  Scriptures,  some 
are  hindered  from  the  knowledge  of  them  by  lack 
of  learning,  others  by  lack  of  leisure,  in  order  that 
the  soul  may  not  perish  through  ignorance,  in  the 
articles,  which  are  few,  we  comprehend  the  whole 
doctrine  of  the  faith. 

The  origin  of  creeds,  or  articles  of  faith, 
may  be  said  to  have  been  in  the  recognition, 
hereinbefore  referred  to,  by  primitive  man, 
of  an  overruling  power  in  nature.  By  what- 
ever name  this  power  was  known,  and 
whether  located  in  the  seas,  the  sun,  the  moon 
or  the  stars,  in  the  winds  or  in  fire,  its  recog- 
nition would  naturally  result  in  a  belief  con- 
stituting a  simple  creed  around  which  a  relig- 
ious faith  and  form  of  worship  would  soon 
gather  shape  and  substance.  This  simple 
creed  would  develop  with  the  development  of 
the  human  race.  As  life  became  more  com- 
plex so  did  the  creed,  or  creeds,  for  the  grow- 
ing complexity  would  necessarily  multiply 
their  number. 

Creeds,  or  articles  of  faith,  being  summar- 
ies, statements  of  doctrine,  confessions  of 

91 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 

faith,  although  the  work  of  fallible  human 
beings  like  ourselves,  are  second  only  in  im- 
portance to  the  sacred  writings  they  epito- 
mize. In  fact,  they  are  in  certain  ways  more 
important  than  these  writings.  The  com- 
parative brevity  and  the  constant  repetition 
of  the  creeds  make  them  more  familiar  to  the 
mass  of  the  churchgoing  people  than  are  the 
sacred  writings  which  these  creeds  are  meant 
to  represent.  It  is  all-important,  therefore, 
that  intelligent  men  and  women  shall  en- 
deavor to  learn  something  of  the  history  and 
development  of  their  creeds,  and  thus  be 
made  able  to  judge  whether  any  of  such 
creeds  correctly  express  what  they  really  be- 
lieve, and  can  be  safely  accepted  as  their 
guides  in  life. 

In  the  chapters  next  following,  an  effort 
wUl  be  made  to  state  a  few  general  facts  of 
interest  in  connection  with  the  development 
of  creeds  or  articles  of  faith.  This  develop- 
ment-study will  naturally  commence  with  a 
consideration  of  the  Jewish  faith;  then  will 
follow  the  Christian  faith ;  and  finally  a  brief 
reference  to  some  other  faiths  of  special  in- 
terest or  represented  by  important  fol- 
lowings. 


92 


CREEDS— FAITH  IN  WORDS 


r 

CHAPTER  VII 

THE  JEWISH  FAITH 

The  Hebrew  nation  builds  its  religious  be- 
lief upon  the  doctrine  and  laws  recorded  in 
the  Pentateuch,  i.e.,  the  first  five  books  of  the 
Bible  known  as  the  Books  of  Moses.  They 
claim  that  this  doctrine  and  these  laws  were 
in  governing  effect  with  their  nation  long 
before  they  were  permanently  recorded  in 
what  they  call  their  Torah. 

It  has  been  asserted  that  the  original  Pen- 
tateuch, like  everything  celestial,  was  written 
in  black  letters  of  flame  upon  a  white  ground 
of  fire,  and  that  God  held  counsel  with  it 
at  the  creation  of  the  world,  since  it  was 
wisdom  itself  and  it  was  God's  first  revela- 
tion, in  which  he  himself  took  part. 

By  one  Hebrew  authority  {The  Jewish  En- 
cyclopedia) it  is  stated: — 

The  Torah  is  older  than  the  world,  for  it  existed 
either  947  generations  •  or  2,000  years  before  the 
Creation. 

93 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


It  is  easily  conceivable  that  every  law  given 
by  God  to  man  for  his  observance  was  in  the 
mind  of  God  not  only  for  "947  generations 
or  2,000  years  before  the  Creation"  but 
rather  always,  without  time  limit! 

The  Torah,  or  the  first  five  Books  of  Moses 
as  now  of  permanent  record,  contains  all  the 
information  approximating  exactness,  as  to 
the  matters  to  which  it  relates,  that  is  in  the 
possession  of  the  present  generation — and 
theories  as  to  what  was  in  the  mind  of  God 
before  the  Creation  are  of  small  practical 
usefulness.  Brief  extracts  follow  from  sev- 
eral Jewish  authorities  which  will  serve  to 
illustrate  the  Hebrew  doctrine  as  to  the 
Torah,  Talmud  and  related  records. 

Eenan,  History  of  People  of  Israel,  says : — 

The  principal  object  of  the  Torah  was  the  legis- 
lation of  Moses ;  the  Jews  grew  to  consider  the  rec- 
ords that  succeeded  the  death  of  IMoses — that  is  the 
Book  of  Joshua,  as  a  different  work.  Joshua  was 
not  placed  in  the  same  scroll  as  Moses.  The  name 
of  Torah  was  only  given  to  the  part  A<hich  ended 
by  the  death  of  IMoses  on  Mount  Nebo.  Here  was 
the  divine  revelation  complete ;  all  the  rest  was  only 
so  far  inspired  as  the  words  of  any  religious  teacher 

may  claim  to  be  The  Torah  was  not 

a  code  of  laws  promulgated  by  the  State  and  ad- 
ministered by  judges:  it  was  a  sacred  book,  con- 
taining ordinances  to  which  the  stricter  Jews  de- 

94 


CREEDS— FAITH  IN  WORDS 


sired  to  conform,  but  which  till  after  the  days  of 
which  we  speak  had  behind  it  no  sanction  of  author- 
ity "When  political  independence  shall 

have  disappeared,  the  Torah  will  become  a  statute 
everywhere  affecting  the  Jew.  It  will  follow  him 
whithersoever  he  may  go,  and  the  Talmud  will  be 
its  authorized  commentary. 

Graetz,  History  of  the  Jeius,  says : — 

The  priests  of  the  sons  of  Zadok,  who  had  never 
been  idolatrous,  had  brought  with  them  into  captiv- 
ity (about  6th  century  B.C.)  the  Torah  (The  Pen- 
tateuch) The  written  Law,  which  had 

been  made  accessible  to  many  through  the  zeal  of 
Ezra,  and  which  had  found  a  body  of  exponents, 
rendered  the  continuance  of  prophetic  utterances 
unnecessary.  The  scribe  took  the  place  of  the  seer, 
and  the  reading  of  the  Law,  either  to  large  assem- 
blies or  in  houses  of  prayer,  was  substituted  for 

prophetic  revelation  The  persecution 

of  the  Law  (about  6th  Century  A.D.)  endeared  and 
sanctified  it,  and  the  Talmud  was  the  sacred  banner 

around  which  the  entire  nation  rallied  

The  establishing  of  the  final  rules  for  religious  and 
legal  practice,  after  careful  consideration  of  the 
arguments  pro  and  con,  conferred  upon  the  post- 
Amoraie  teachers  the  name  of  Sabureans.  After 
the  various  opinions  were  reviewed,  they  were  the 

ones  that  established  the  final,  valid  law  

In  this  form,  as  edited  by  the  Sabureans,  the  con- 
temporary communities  and  posterity  received  the 
Talmud. 

Elsewhere  it  is  said  that  the  Torah  was 
given  in  completeness  for  all  time  and  for  all 

95 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


manMnd  so  that  no  further  revelation  can 
be  expected. 

One  authority  defines  Torah  or  Thorah  as 
the  Hebrew  term  technically  applied  to  the 
Pentateuch.  Besides  the  term  Torah  there 
is  also  used  Torth  Moshe,  i.e.,  Law  of  Moses, 
on  the  basis  of  the  tradition  which  ascribes 
the  whole  Pentateuch,  the  historical  as  well 
as  the  legal  portions,  to  Moses.  Traces  of 
the  original  sense  of  Torah  as  ''oracles"  are 
to  be  found  in  various  passages  of  the  Old 
Testament.  Another  authority  defines  the 
Torah  as,  in  ancient  Hebrew  literature,  any 
decision  of  instruction  in  matters  of  law  and 
conduct  given  by  a  sacred  authority;  the  re- 
vealed will  of  God;  specifically  the  (Mosaic) 
Law;  hence  the  book  of  the  Law,  the  Penta- 
teuch.   Montef lore  is  quoted  as  saying : — 

The  Torah — or  teaching — of  the  priests,  half 
judicial,  half  pedagogic,  was  a  deep  moral  in- 
fluence: and  there  was  no  element  in  the  religion 
which  was  at  once  more  genuinely  Hebrew  and 
more  closely  identified  with  the  national  God. 
There  is  good  reason  to  believe  that  this  priestly 
Torah  is  the  one  religious  institution  which  can  be 

correctly  attributed  to  Moses  Though 

Moses  was  not  the  author  of  the  written  law,  he  was 
unquestionably  the  foimder  of  that  oral  teaching, 
or  Torah,  which  preceded,  and  became  the  basis  of, 
the  codes  of  the  Pentateuch. 

96 


CREEDS— FAITH  IN  WORDS 


The  importance  of  the  Torah,  from  the  Jew- 
ish standpoint,  will  be  hereinafter  seen  when 
it  is  noted  that  a  belief  in  the  Torah  is  in- 
cluded in  their  important  articles  of  faith 
as  stated  by  their  wise  men. 

The  Talmud  has  been  described  as  the  writ- 
ten embodiment  of  the  ancient  tradition.  A 
tradition  transmitted  orally  for  centuries  is 
said  to  have  been  finally  cast  into  definite  lit- 
erary form,  although  from  the  moment  the 
Talmud  became  the  chief  subject  of  study  in 
the  academies  it  had  a  double  existence  and 
was  accordingly,  in  its  final  stage,  redacted 
in  the  different  forms.  The  Talmud  is  also 
stated  to  be  the  collective  name  of  the  Mishna 
and  Gemara  containing  the  oral  law  and  other 
traditions  of  the  Jews. 

The  Mishna  is  the  earlier  part  or  text  of 
the  Talmud,  containing  Hebrew  decisions 
based  on  oral  traditions,  relating  to  their 
laws  and  religious  rites.  It  treats  of  pray- 
ers, duties  of  husbandmen,  festivals,  mar- 
riage relations,  judicial  subjects,  matters  con- 
cerning the  temple  and  institutions  respect- 
ing purification. 

The  Gemara  is  of  later  date  and  elucidates 
the  Mishna  by  commentaries,  textual  para- 
graphs and  explanatory  remarks  by  Jewish 
7  97 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


scholars.  Authorities  are  compared  and  dia- 
logues frequent.  As  these  writings  extend 
over  many  centuries  and  are  full  of  allusions 
to  Jewish  usages  and  customs  they  give  im- 
portant assistance  in  the  scholarly  study  of 
the  Xew  Testament.  As  to  what  constituted 
the  recognized  Jewish  canon  of  their  sacred 
Scriptures,  it  has  been  said : — 

The  idea  of  canonicity  can  only  have  been  sug- 
gested at  a  period  when  the  national  lit?rature  had 
progressed  far  enough  to  possess  a  large  number 
of  works  from  which  a  selection  might  be  made. 
.  .  .  .  The  canonical  books,  therefore  needed 
no  special  designation,  since  originally  all  were 

holy  The    Jewish    canon  comprises 

twenty-four  books,  the  five  of  the  Pentateuch,  eight 
books  of  the  Prophets  (Joshua,  Judges,  Samuel, 
Kings,  Isaiah,  Jeremiah,  Ezekiel,  The  Minor 
Prophets)  and  eleven  Hagiographa  (Psalms,  Prov- 
erbs, Job,  Song  of  Solomon,  Ruth,  Lamenta- 
tions, Ecclesiastes,  Esther,  Daniel,  Ezra  and  Chron- 
icles) The    most    radical  criticism 

agrees  that  the  Torah  is  the  first  and  oldest  part 

of  the  canon  The  oldest  Baraita  [oral 

teaching  of  the  Hebrew  private  schools  and  not 
contained  in  the  Mishna]  assumes  the  author  of 
every  book  to  have  been  a  prophet,  and  finds  him. 
either  in  the  titles  or  the  sequence  of  the  books 

themselves  There  were  controversies 

eoncernincr  the  admission  into  the  Canon  of  the 
Books  of  Ezekiel,  Solomon's  three  books  (Proverbs, 
Ecclesiastes,  Song  of  Solomon),  and  Esther. 

98 


CREEDS— FAITH  IN  WORDS 


It  has  been  said  that  in  all  probability  there 
never  was  another  people,  excepting  possibly 
the  Brahmans,  who  surrounded  their  holy 
writings  with  such  respect  and  transmitted 
these  writings  through  the  centuries  with 
such  self-sacrijBce,  and  preserved  them  with 
so  little  change  for  more  than  two  thousand 
years.  The  Vedas  in  India  were  similarly 
preserved. 

With  the  coming  into  prominence  of  the 
Hebrew  nation  as  a  religious  power,  the 
knowledge  as  to  the  overruling  supreme 
sometliiyig  found  in  nature  began  to  become 
more  definite,  and  inspired  a  belief  in  tiie 
God  first  known  to  this  peculiar  people;  and 
thereafter  in  the  historical  records,  prophe- 
cies, laws,  etc.,  of  their  prophets,  priests  and 
kings,  as  particularly  set  forth  in  the  Hebrew 
writings  now  known  to  us  as  the  canon  of  the 
Old  Testament  Scriptures. 

In  appropriating  these  Hebrew  Scriptures 
as  an  integral  part  of  our  Christian  Bible  we 
have,  to  this  extent,  subscribed  to  the  Jewish 
faith.  Since  our  Saviour's  time  Christianity 
has  thankfully  acknowledged  its  indebtedness 
to  the  Hebrew  nation  for  the  painstaking, 
reverent  care  with  which  that  nation  pre- 
served the  Old  Testament  Scriptures,  and 

99 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


guarded  them  from  change  or  error.  This 
faith  in  and  gratitude  to  the  Hebrews,  has 
existed  side  by  side  with  a  distrust,  hatred 
and  cruelty  as  unchristian  in  spirit  as  it  is 
difficult  to  understand. 

In  so  far  as  creeds  relate  to  the  Old  Testa- 
ment, any  investigation  into  their  origin  and 
development  must  naturally  begin  with  an 
effort  to  discover  and  understand  the  earliest 
recorded  creeds  or  articles  of  faith  of  the 
Hebrew  or  Jewish  people.  The  religious  be- 
lief of  the  Hebrews,  as  has  been  said, 
is  and  has  been  a  truly  national  one. 
Each  Hebrew  child  acquires  by  birthright 
its  religious  membership,  no  profession 
of  faith  being  required  at  any  time  thereafter 
or  deemed  necessary.  This  accounts  for  the 
fact  that  the  Hebrews  have  never  had  a  for- 
mulated creed  or  articles  of  faith  to  which 
assent  was  demanded,  as  is  the  case  in  other 
religious  bodies.  While  the  Jews  have  no 
such  formulated  creed  or  articles  of  faith, 
they  have  facts  as  to  their  belief  incorporated 
in  their  liturgy  and  utilized  for  purposes  of 
instruction,  but  without  any  other  authority 
than  that  proceeding  naturally  from  the  wis- 
dom and  standing  of  the  authors.  The  Jews* 
profession  of  faith  has  been  described  as  sub- 

100 


CREEDS— FAITH  IN  WORDS 


stantially  limited  to  the  acknowledgment  of 
the  unity  of  God  and  the  rejection  of  idola- 
try. If  this  correctly  states  their  belief,  it 
is  their  creed.  That  the  Jews  have  experi- 
enced the  practical  need  of  a  concise  state- 
ment of  their  religious  belief,  such  as  is  found 
in  the  Christian  creeds,  appears  from  the 
various  efforts  made  by  their  wise  men  during 
the  passing  ages  to  express  just  what  their 
faith  was  and  is. 

The  Jewish  Encyclopedia,  from  which  brief 
extracts  are  here  made  in  reference  to  the 
Jewish  faith,  contains  exhaustive  and  ex- 
tremely interesting  information  upon  the  gen- 
eral subject.  We  will  compare  the  results 
of  some  of  the  efforts  of  the  Jewish  rabbis 
and  scholars  to  find  language  in  which  to 
record  their  faith. 

Philo  of  Alexandria  (first  century)  stated 
the  belief  or  chief  tenets  of  Mosaism  to  be : — 

1  God  is  and  rules; 

2  God  is  one ; 

3  The  world  was  created; 

4  Creation  is  one; 

5  God's  providence  rules  creation. 

Akiba  declared  "That  the  command  to  love 
one's  neighbor  is  the  fundamental  principle 
of  the  Law. ' ' 

101 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 

Deutsch's  Literary  Remains,  in  an  article 
on  the  Talmud,  says, 

That  grand  dictum,  "Do  unto  others  as  thou 
wouldst  be  done  by,"  against  which  Kant  declared 
himself  so  energetically  from  a  philosophical  point 
of  view,  is  quoted  by  Hillel,  the  President,  at  whose 
death  Jesus  was  ten  years  of  age,  not  as  anything 
new,  but  as  an  old  and  well  known  dictum  that 
comprised  the  whole  law. 

Saadia's  (tenth  century)  Emunot  we-De'ot 
says : — 

1  The  world  is  created ; 

2  God  is  one  and  incorporeal; 

3  Belief  in  revelation  (including  the  divine  ori- 
gin of  tradition) ; 

4  Man  is  called  to  righteousness  and  endowed 
with  all  necessary  qualities  of  mind  and  soul  to 
avoid  sin ; 

5  Belief  in  reward  and  punishment; 

6  The  soul  is  created  pure ;  after  death  it  leaves 
the  body; 

7  Belief  in  resurrection ; 

8  ]\Iessianic  expectation,  retribution,  and  final 
judgment. 

The  only  confession  of  faith  which,  though 
not  so  denominated,  is  said  to  have  found 
universal  acceptance,  forms  a  part  of  the 
daily  liturgy  contained  in  Jewish  prayer 
books,  and  in  its  original  form  reads  some- 
what as  follows : — 

102 


CREEDS— FAITH  IN  WORDS 


True  and  established  is  the  word  for  us  forever ; 
True  it  is  that  Thou  art  our  God,  as  Thou  wast  the 

God  of  our  fathers; 
Our  King  as  [Thou  wast]  the  King  of  our  fathers; 
Our  Redeemer  and  the  Redeemer  of  our  fathers; 
Our  Creator  and  the  rock  of  our  Salvation; 
Our  Deliverer  and  Saviour — this  from  eternity  is 

Thy  name,  and  there  is  no  God  besides  Thee. 

It  is  believed  that  this  confession  of  faith 
probably  dates  from  the  days  of  the  Has- 
moneans. 

The  African  rabbi,  Hananel  b.  Hushiel 
(eleventh  century)  called  for: — 

1  Belief  in  God ; 

2  Belief  in  prophecy; 

3  Belief  in  future  state ; 

4  Belief  in  the  advent  of  the  Messiah. 

Judah  ha-Levi  (twelfth  century)  says: — 

"We  are  not  putting  on  an  equality  with  us  a  per- 
son entering  our  religion  through  confession  alone 
[by  word].  We  require  deeds,  including  in  the 
term  self-restraint,  purity,  study  of  the  Law,  cir- 
cumcision, and  the  performance  of  the  other  duties 

demanded  by  the  Torah  The  miracles 

and  traditions  are,  in  their  supernatural  character, 
both  the  source  and  the  evidence  of  the  true  faith; 
with  them  Judaism  stands  and  falls. 

R.  Abraham  ibn  Daud  (twelfth  century) 
gave  as  principles  of  the  faith  and  the  law: — 

1  The  existence  of  God; 

2  His  unity; 

103 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


3  His  spirituality; 

4  His  other  attributes; 

5  His  power  as  manifested  in  his  works; 

6  His  providence. 

The  articles,  according  to  Maimonides 
(Moses  ben  Maimon;  twelfth  century),  the 
most  widely  spread  and  popular  of  all  the 
Jewish  statements  of  faith,  accepted  by  the 
great  majority  of  Jews  and  found  in  the  old 
prayer  book,  are  asserted  (1157)  to  be: — 

1  The  existence  of  God; 

2  His  unity; 

3  His  spirituality; 

4  His  eternity; 

5  God  alone  the  object  of  worship; 

6  Revelation  through  His  prophets; 

7  The  preeminence  of  Closes  among  the 
Prophets ; 

8  God's  law  given  on  Mount  Sinai; 

9  The  immutability  of  the  Torah  as  God's  law; 

10  God's  foreknowledge  of  men's  actions; 

11  Retribution ; 

12  The  coming  of  the  Messiah; 

13  Resurrection. 

Or,  as  stated  by  Graetz,  they  are: — 

1  The  belief  in  the  existence  of  God; 

2  In  His  indivisible  unity ; 

3  In  His  incorporeality  and  insusceptibility  of 
change ; 

4  In  His  eternity  and  existence  before  the 
world ; 

104 


CREEDS— FAITH  IN  WORDS 


5  In  His  absolute  claim  to  our  adoration 
(Monotheism) ; 

6  In  the  prophetic  inspiration  of  chosen  men; 

7  In  Closes  as  the  greatest  prophet,  with  whom 
no  other  prophet  can  be  compared; 

8  In  the  divinity  of  the  Torah; 

9  In  its  unalterability ; 

10  In  God's  providence; 

11  In  His  just  reward  and  punishment; 

12  In  the  future  appearance  of  the  Messiah; 

13  In  the  resurrection  of  the  dead. 

These  articles  rest  on  investigation,  and 
therefore  cannot  claim  unquestioning  accept- 
ance; yet,  according  to  Maimonides,  no  one 
can  be  considered  a  true  Israelite,  or  Jew, 
who  does  not  acknowledge  them  all  as  true. 
He  who  denies  a  single  one  of  them  is  a 
heretic ;  he  does  not  belong  to  the  community 
of  Judaism  and  cuts  himself  off  from  the  hope 
of  future  bliss.  The  infallibility  thus  claimed 
by  Maimonides  does  not  appear  to  be  taken 
seriously  by  his  nation.  Such  claims  by 
mortal  men  rarely  are,  for  any  important 
periods  of  time. 

Joseph  Albo  (fifteenth  century)  undertook 
to  investigate  in  how  far  freedom  of  inquiry 
on  religious  matters  was  possible  within  the 
limits  of  Judaism.  He  claimed  that  what 
God  had  once  revealed  by  his  own  mouth 
direct  to  man  was  by  virtue  of  that  fact,  un- 
105 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


alterable  and  binding  for  all  time;  but  that 
what  had  been  communicated  only  by  a 
prophetic  intermediary  might  suffer  change 
or  even  annulment. 

In  practice  the  obligations  of  the  Torah  were  to 
be  regarded  as  binding  and  unalterable  until  it 
should  please  God  to  reveal  other  laws  through  the 
medium  of  a  prophet  as  great  as  j\Ioses,  and  in  as 
open  and  convincing  a  manner  as  on  Sinai. 
(Graetz.) 

Thirteenth  to  the  fifteenth  century  authori- 
ties reduced  the  thirteen  articles  of  Maimo- 
nides  to  three : — 

1  Belief  in  God; 

2  In  Creation  (or  revelation) ; 

3  In  providence  (or  retribution). 

Modern  efforts  of  Jewish  authorities  to  se- 
cure a  satisfactory  agreement  upon  articles 
of  faith  have  resulted  in  the  following  points 
in  common : — 

1  The  affirmation  of  the  Unity  of  God  ; 

2  The  election  of  Israel  as  the  priest  people; 

3  The  IMessianic  destiny  of  all  humanity. 

The  Central  Conference  of  American 
Eabbis,  in  1896,  at  Milwaukee,  Wisconsin, 
adopted  the  following  articles  in  the  Prose- 
lyte Confession: — 

1  God  the  Only  One; 

2  Man  His  image; 

106 


CREEDS— FAITH  IN  WORDS 


3a  Immortality  of  the  soul; 
3b  Retribution; 
4   Israel's  Mission. 

A  prominent  rabbi  of  the  present  day 
stated,  in  reply  to  a  query : — 

Beyond  the  belief  in  the  Unity  of  God,  there  has 
never  been  a  universally  acknowledged  creed  in 
Israel.  From  time  to  time,  various  philosophers, 
such  as  Albo  and  ]\raimonides  formulated  creeds, 
but  they  did  not  find  universal  acceptance,  nor  is 
there  a  standard  of  creed  to-day  except  a  belief  in 
the  Unity  of  God. 

He  also  says  that  he  expresses  the  Jewish 
creed  as  follows : — 

One  God  over  All; 

One  Brotherhood  of  AU; 

Peace  and  Good-will  among  All. 

The  statements  of  the  Jewish  faith  herein- 
before quoted  agree  only  as  to  a  belief  in  the 
existence  of  God  and  as  to  his  unity.  They 
differ  chiefly  in  describing,  with  more  or  less 
detail,  certain  attributes  of  God  and  facts  of 
revelation.  One  elects  to  refer  specially  to 
some  of  them  and  another  prefers  to  empha- 
size other  attributes  or  facts. 

The  composite  faith  these  statements  pre- 
sent may  be  summarized  as  follows : — 

1  Belief  in  the  existence  of  one  God ;  there 
107 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


is  no  other  God;  the  God  of  the  fathers,  in- 
corporeal, and  who  rules. 

2  There  is  one  creation;  the  world  was 
created;  God's  providence  rules  creation. 

3  God's  attributes  include,  unity,  provi- 
dence, spirituality,  love,  power,  eternity,  fore- 
knowledge of  men's  acts. 

4  Belief  in  prophecy,  revelation,  retribu- 
tion; soul  leaves  body  after  death;  future 
state;  resurrection;  judgment. 

5  Coming  of  the  Messiah. 

6  Preeminence  of  Moses;  tradition;  immu- 
tability of  Torah  as  God's  law. 

The  Jewish  articles  of  faith  as  thus  sum- 
marized contain  no  such  fundamental  conflict 
as  is  found  in  the  beliefs  of  the  Christian 
churches  and  that  has  caused  their  separation 
into  numerous  denominations,  or  sects,  and 
the  adoption  of  formulated  creeds  to  repre- 
sent specific  and  differing  standards  of 
faith.  The  continuing  Hebrew  religious 
unity  has  been  due  rather  to  the  simple  and 
fundamental  character  of  their  national  be- 
lief, than  to  any  sacrifice  of  intelligent,  indi- 
vidual conviction  in  assent  to  complex  doc- 
trines representing  theories  of  men  in  tem- 
porary positions  of  churchly  authority,  men 
of  the  generation  in  which  they  lived  whose 
108 


CREEDS— FAITH  IN  WORDS 


theories  upon  matters  religious  are  entitled 
only  to  such  consideration  by  the  generations 
that  follow  as  is  due  to  the  quality  of  their 
work  and  the  adaptability  of  their  theories  to 
the  needs  of  a  developing  race.  In  avoiding 
the  adoption,  by  any  supreme  authority  of 
the  Je^T.sh  Church  of  any  formulated  creed,  a 
wide  latitude  was  secured  for  individual  re- 
ligious thought,  opinion  and  theory  within 
the  bounds  of  the  Church. 

Members  of  the  Jewish  religious  family  are 
such,  as  has  already  been  said,  by  birthright, 
and  no  profession  of  belief  in  any  creed,  or, 
in  fact,  in  anything,  can  be  required  as  a  con- 
dition precedent  to  such  membership.  It  is  a 
fact,  however,  that  at  many  times  and  in 
many  localities,  learned  rabbis  have  felt  the 
need  of  some  concise  statement  of  their  faith, 
and  this  has  been  particularly  the  case  where 
they  have  added  proselytes  to  their  number. 
Such  proselytes,  not  born  into  the  Jewish 
brotherhood  but  passing  into  it  from  other 
religious  bodies  or  from  a  state  of  entire 
unbelief,  need  to  know  what  their  new  asso- 
ciates expect  them  to  believe. 

This  condition  of  affairs  is  illustrated  by 
the  action  of  the  assembly  of  rabbis  at  Mil- 
waukee, Wisconsin,  in  1896,  in  the  adopting 
109 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


the  Proselyte  Confession  before  quoted.  It 
was  also  recognized  by  the  Jews  in  a  recorded 
statement  that  "missionary  or  proselyting 
religions  are  driven  to  the  definite  declara- 
tion of  their  teaching."  Creeds  appear  to 
be  necessary  in  every  religious  organization 
at  some  stage  of  its  development.  How  can 
religious  organizations  exist  for  any  intelli- 
gent, common  purpose  without  their  adher- 
ents knowing  what  that  purpose  is  ?  Or  how 
can  they  expect  to  advance  any  religious  be- 
lief without  knowing  what  they  believe  ?  How 
can  they  know  without  the  equivalent  of  what 
is  generally  designated  as  a  creed? 

Creeds,  like  all  works  of  men,  are  never 
perfect,  never  final.  They  are  subject  to  the 
law  of  development,  and  therefore  those  who 
undertake  to  formulate  creeds  will  do  well  if 
they  confine  the  creed  requirements  to  simple 
and  clearly  fundamental  needs.  By  so  doing 
the  necessity  for  subsequent  change  will  be 
minimized.  Errors  in  religious  claims  that 
demand  frequent  changes  therein  are  undesir- 
able and  disturbing;  they  should  be  avoided 
so  far  as  possible. 

This  investigation  into  the  Jewish  articles 
of  faith  appears  to  show  that  as  to  the  canon 
of  the  Old  Testament  Scriptures,  the  Jew  and 
110 


CREEDS— FAITH  IN  WORDS 


the  Christian  may  state,  as  their  common 
faith  :— 

"  I  believe  in  one  God  the  Father  Ahnighty, 
Maker  of  Heaven  and  Earth." 

Thus  far,  but  no  farther,  can  they  go  hand 
in  hand  in  stating  the  religious  creeds  or 
articles  of  faith  that  they  hold  in  common. 
They  may  and  do,  however,  find  themselves 
able  to  cooperate  effectively  in  much  of  the 
beneficial  and  humanitarian  work  of  the 
world. 

Tfie  Jeuish  Encyclopedia,  The  New  International  Enajclo- 
pxdia.  The  Century  Dictionary  and  The  American  Cyclopxdia 
contain  useful  facta  in  reference  to  these  important  Jewish 
questions. 


CREEDS-FAITH  IN  WORDS 

r 

CHAPTER  VIII 

THE  CHRISTIAN  FAITH 

With,  the  appearance  of  Jesus  Christ  upon 
the  earth  came  the  next  stage  in  the  develop- 
ment of  creeds.  His  command  to  believe  in 
the  Father  and  himself,  and  his  promise  of 
a  Comforter,  the  Holy  Ghost,  culminated  in 
what  is  known  as  the  baptismal  formula: — 

Go  ye  therefore,  and  teach  all  nations,  baptizing 
them  in  the  name  of  the  Father,  and  of  the  Son, 
and  of  the  Holy  Ghost  (Matt.  28: 19). 

From  this  command  resulted  the  for- 
mula : — 

I  believe  in  the  Father,  Son  and  Holy  Ghost. 

or,  as  expressed  in  one  of  the  earliest 
creeds : — 

I  believe  in  the  only  true  God,  the  Father,  the 
Almighty 

And  in  His  only  begotten  Son,  Jesus  Christ  our 

Lord  and  Saviour, 
And  in  the  Holy  Ghost,  the  Life  Giver. 

112 


CREEDS— FAITH  IN  WORDS 


It  is  said  that  as  early  as  A.  D.  200  the 
church  authorities  required  a  declaration  of 
belief  in  repentance,  in  the  remission  of  sins 
and  in  the  Church. 

About  fifty  years  later  the  belief  had  grown 
into  this  creed : — 

I  believe  in  God  the  Father  Ahnighty, 
Maker  of  Heaven  and  Earth; 

And  in  Jesus  Christ  his  only  Son ;  and  in  the  Holy 
Ghost ;  the  remission  of  sins ;  the  resurrection  of 
the  flesh  and  the  life  everlasting. 

The  creed  of  Marcellus,  so  called,  said  to 
have  been  used  by  the  Roman  Catholic 
Church,  about  A.  D.  341,  and  claimed  to  be  of 
a  much  earlier  date,  was : — 

I  believe  in  God  Almighty 

And  in  Jesus  Christ,  His  only  begotten  Son,  our 
Lord, 

Born  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  and  Mary  the  Virgin, 
Under  Pontius  Pilate  crucified  and  buried, 
And  the  third  day  he  arose  again  from  the  dead. 
Ascended  into  heaven, 

And  sitteth  on  the  right  hand  of  the  Father, 

From  whence  He  cometh  to  Judge  quick  and  dead, 

And  in  the  Holy  Ghost 

The  Holy  Church 

The  forgiveness  of  Sins, 

The  resurrection  of  the  flesh,  the  life  everlasting. 

The  additions  thus  made  to  the  creed  from 
time  to  time  were  doubtless  the  result  of 
8  113 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 

answers  by  the  church  authorities  to  natural 
inquiries  from  priests  or  people;  and,  also, 
the  church  authorities  may  have  elected  to 
decide  anticipated  inquiries  in  advance.  In 
either  event,  the  additions  represent  the  opin- 
ions of  fallible  men  as  to  what  the  Holy 
Scriptures  say  or  mean.  Other  fallible  men 
on  later  dates,  perhaps  with  added  light,  may 
think  and  decide  differently.  So  while  the 
Holy  Scriptures  remain,  it  is  well  to  remem- 
ber that  the  creeds  interpreting  them  may,  do, 
and  should  be  expected  to,  change  with  the 
passing  generations  and  their  several  schools 
of  thought.  It  is  not  within  the  purpose  of 
this  work  to  attempt  to  follow  every  minor 
change  in  the  creeds  of  Christianity.  Tliis 
class  of  information  may  be  found  in  the 
more  scholarly  and  complete  publications  of 
those  who  have  made  the  research  of  biblical 
and  related  subjects  their  life  work. 

The  next  step  in  creed  development  to  be 
here  mentioned  is  found  in  the  so-called 
Apostles'  Creed.  There  are  various  theories, 
but  there  is  no  definite  information,  as  to  the 
authorship  of  this  creed.  It  was  never 
adopted  or  its  use  authorized  by  any  supreme 
council  of  any  dominant  early  church  organ- 
ization. No  one  who  has  made  even  a  super- 
114 


CREEDS— FAITH  IN  WORDS 


ficial  examination  of  the  subject  now  appears 
to  imagine  it  to  have  been  the  work  of  the 
ai)ostles,  or  of  any  of  them,  although  this  has 
at  times  been  claimed  or  suggested;  a  story 
to  such  effect  appears  to  have  originated  late 
in  the  fourth  century.  This  creed  stands, 
however,  as  the  most  important  and,  in  its 
substance,  the  most  generally  accepted  creed 
of  the  great  mass  of  professing  Christians  of 
all  schools.  It  is  one  of  the  creeds  of  the 
Roman  Catholic  Church.  It  appears  in  the 
Book  of  Common  Prayer  of  the  Church  of 
England,  preceded  by  the  direction  that  it 
shall  be  sung  or  said  by  the  minister  and  the 
people,  standing;  except  only  on  such  days  as 
the  Creed  of  St.  Athanasius  is  appointed  to 
be  read.  It  is  the  important  creed  of  The 
Protestant  Episcopal  Church  in  the  United 
States  of  America,  and  is  the  first  creed 
stated  in  its  Book  of  Common  Prayer. 

It  is,  with  the  substitution  of  "the  holy 
Christian  Church"  for  ''The  holy  Catholic 
Church,"  the  creed  of  the  Lutheran  Church 
and  a  part  of  its  regular  services. 

It  is,  with  the  omission  of  the  words  "He 
descended  into  hell";  and  of  the  word 
"again"  between  the  words  "he  rose"  and 
the  words  "from  the  dead";  and  with  the 
change  of  the  word  "  on"  to  "at"  so  as  to 
115 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


read  ''at  the  right  hand,"  the  creed  of  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church. 

It  is  included  in  the  book  of  common  wor- 
ship authorized  by  The  Presbyterian  Church 
in  the  United  States  of  America,  with  provis- 
ion for  the  permissive  substitution  of  the 
words  "He  continued  in  the  state  of  the  dead, 
and  under  the  power  of  death,  until  the  third 
day"  for  the  words  "He  descended  into  hell." 

It  is  also  used  by  or  is  acceptable  to  other 
important  bodies  of  Christians. 

This  great  creed  is  worded  as  follows : — 

I  believe  in  God  the  Father  Almighty, 

Maker  of  heaven  and  earth : 

And  in  Jesus  Christ  his  only  Son  our  Lord: 

Who  was  conceived  by  the  Holy  Ghost, 

Born  of  the  Virgin  Mary: 

Suffered  under  Pontius  Pilate, 

Was  crucified,  dead,  and  buried: 

He  c'.escended  into  hell; 

The  third  day  he  rose  again  from  the  dead: 

He  ascended  into  heaven. 

And  sitteth  on  the  right  hand  of  God  the  Father 
Almighty : 

From  thence  he  shall  come  to  judge  the  quick  and 

the  dead. 
I  believe  in  the  Holy  Ghost: 
The  holy  Catholic  Church; 
The  Communion  of  Saints: 
The  Forgiveness  of  sins: 
The  Resurrection  of  the  body: 
And  the  Life  everlasting.  Amen. 

116 


CREEDS— FAITH  IN  WORDS 


This  creed  disposed  of  many  more  possible 
subjects  of  controversy  than  did  any  of  the 
earlier  creeds,  but  if  its  origin  was  prior  to 
A.  D.  325  it  still  left  undecided  important 
questions  that  began  early  to  agitate  the  re- 
ligious world.  That  was  a  disputatious  age 
of  theory. 

Arius,  described  as  grave  and  blame- 
less presbyter  of  Alexandria"  and  Atha- 
nasius  as  "a  young  deacon  of  Alexandria" 
became  notable  leaders  of  two  distinct  schools 
of  thought.  Arius  is  said  to  have  been  about 
forty  years  older  than  Athanasius.  He  is 
described  as  having  been  **tall,  serious,  im- 
pressive, insinuating  in  his  bearing  and  man- 
ners, ....  with  the  arts  of  mental 
reservation  and  dissimulation,"  which  latter 
may  be  said  to  have  been  somewhat  character- 
istic of  the  age  in  which  he  lived.  Athanasius 
has  been  described  as  small  of  stature,  with 
the  stoop  of  a  student  and  an  angelic  expres- 
sion of  countenance.  He  went  to  the  council 
accompanying,  in  a  clerical  capacity,  his 
bishop,  whom  he  succeeded  in  office  a  few 
years  later.  He  appears  to  have  been  a  bom 
leader  of  men. 

The  important  questions  at  issue  were  as 
to  the  relation  of  Jesus  Christ  to  God  the 
117 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


Father,  and  they  have  been  briefly  stated  as 
follows : — 

Was  Christ  Co-Eternal  with  the  Father? 
Was  He  of  one  essence  or  substance  with  the 
Father? 

Or  was  God  the  Father  Almighty  an  unknown  and 
unknowable  God  and  was  Jesus  Christ  his  Minis- 
ter, Son,  Agency  created  by  God  to  coromunicate 
with  his  creatures  on  his  behalf? 

The  battle  raged.  The  Church  became  a 
divided  Church  militant.  Feeling  ran  so 
high  that  important  political  questions  be- 
came involved;  riots  and  disturbances  re- 
sulted. The  political  importance  of  this  situ- 
ation was  recognized  by  the  heathen-Christian 
emperor,  Constantine,  and  he  determined  that 
the  questions  at  issue  must  be  settled 
promptly  and  authoritatively  so  that  religious 
quiet  should  pervade  his  empire. 

His  method  was  to  call  a  general  council 
of  the  bishops  of  the  Church  to  consider  and 
decide  the  controversy.  This  first  of  the  gen- 
eral Christian  Councils  met  at  Nicasa,  in 
Bithynia  of  ancient  Asia  Minor,  north  of 
Phrygia  and  Galatia,  in  the  summer  of  A.  D. 
325.  More  than  three  hundred  bishops,  rep- 
resenting a  widely-extended  territory,  are 
said  to  have  been  present.  Some  accounts 
claim  that  three  hundred  and  eighteen 
118 


CREEDS— FAITH  IN  WORDS 


bishops  were  present,  being  the  number  of 
the  servants  of  Abraham.  Arius,  the  presby- 
ter and  Athanasius,  the  young  deacon,  both 
of  Alexandria,  were  the  recognized  leaders  of 
the  different  factions  in  the  Council. 

This  was  the  first  attempt  ever  made  to 
adopt  a  formal  creed  that  should  thereafter 
become  a  test  of  faith  for  all  Christendom. 
The  Convention  became  a  battle  ground.  It 
does  not  appear  to  have  been  such  a  quiet, 
deliberative  assembly,  spending  much  time  in 
humble  prayer  to  the  Almighty  for  guidance, 
as  we  like  to  believe  was  the  attitude  of 
Councils  assuming  to  decide  grave  questions 
of  faith.  It  seems  to  have  been  at  times  an 
almost  riotous  assembly.  During  the  session 
many  compromises  were  proposed,  consid- 
ered and  rejected.  The  young  deacon  Atha- 
nasius would  be  satisfied  with  notliing  short 
of  the  entire  acceptance  of  his  creed  by  the 
Council.  One  authority  upon  this  famous 
controversy  and  Council  says,  "It  was  the 
decision  of  Athanasius  which  made  half  the 
bitterness  between  the  Roman  and  the  Teu- 
ton; between  Christianity  and  Islam  to  this 
day." 

At  the  close  of  this  historic  Council  the 
aggressive  minority  led  by  Athanasius  had, 
119 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


under  the  pressure  of  the  Emperor  Constan- 
tine,  been  changed  to  a  half-hearted  majority, 
and  had  triumphed.  The  creed  of  Nicjea  was 
adopted.  It  was  the  creed  of  a  council  of 
angry  disputants,  and  its  adoption  was  due 
to  the  aggressive  determination  of  the  young 
Greek  deacon  Athanasius  of  Alexandria,  who 
claimed  that  his  particular  theories  alone 
were  right  and  must  be  accepted.  The  con- 
clusions of  this  Council  were  the  cause  of  bit- 
ter, unjust  and  unchristian  theological  quar- 
rels lasting  during  several  centuries.  The 
differences  existing  between  the  creed 
adopted  by  the  Council  of  Nicasa  and  the  creed 
now  known  as  the  Nicene  Creed  doubtless 
represent  compromises,  but  as  to  when  and 
by  whom  made  there  does  not  appear  to  be 
any  definite  knowledge.  All  that  is  known  is 
that  the  amended  creed  was  subsequently  ac- 
cepted and  adopted  by  authority  of  a  General 
Council  of  the  Roman  Catholic  Church  held 
at  Chalcedon,  A.  D.  451. 

Creed  adopted  at  Nic^a,  A.D.  325  (original) 

We  believe  in  one  God,  the  Father  Almighty  maker 
of  all  things,  both  visible  and  invisible; 
And  in  one  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  tho  Son  of  God,  be- 
gotten of  the  Father,  an  only  begotten — that  is 
from  the  essence  of  the  Father — God  from  God, 
120 


CREEDS— FAITH  IN  WORDS 


light  from  light,  true  God  from  true  God,  begotten, 
not  made,  being  of  one  essence  with  the  Father; 
by  whom  all  things  were  made,  both  things  in 
heaven  and  things  on  earth;  who  for  us  msu  and 
for  our  salvation  came  down  and  was  made  flesh, 
was  made  man,  suffered  and  rose  again  the  third 
day,  ascended  into  heaven,  cometh  to  judge  quick 
and  dead; 

And  in  the  Holy  Spirit. 
But  those  who  say  that 

"There  was  once  when  he  was  not"  and  "before  he 
was  begotten  he  was  not"  and  "he  was  made  of 
things  that  were  not"  or  maintain  that  the  Son  of 
God  is  of  a  different  essence,  or  created,  or  subject 
to  moral  change  or  alteration — these  doth  the  catho- 
lic and  apostolic  church  anathematize. 

It  is  said  that  nearly  thirty  years  of  a  com- 
parative theological  peace  of  exhaustion  fol- 
lowed, and  then  the  war  broke  out  afresh. 
The  religious  world  was  thereafter,  during 
several  centuries,  either  Athanasian  or  Arian, 
as  one  emperor  or  another  passed  away  or 
came  into  power  and  was  under  one  or  the 
other  court  influence.  When  the  Athanasians 
were  in  power  they  persecuted  and  exiled  the 
Arians.  When  the  Arians  were  in  power 
they  persecuted  and  exiled  the  Athanasians. 

It  is  difficult  to  trace  the  true  Christian 
spirit  of  humility  and  brotherly  love  in  any 
of  this  long-strung-out  controversy.  Finally 
after   centuries   of   miserable  contention, 
121 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


Arianism  was  the  first  to  be  worn  out  and  it 
gave  up  the  struggle.  The  theory  of  the 
young  Greek  deacon  of  Alexandria  became 
for  the  time,  and  continues  to  be,  the  creed 
of  Christendom,  and  to-day  it  is  the  professed 
belief  of  very  many  Christians  who  are  as  ig- 
norant of  and  uninterested  in  its  meaning  as 
they  are  ignorant  of  and  uninterested  in  its 
history ! 

The  theory  thus  adopted  by  the  Council  at 
Nicaea,  A.  D.  325,  amended  no  one  knows 
when  or  by  whom,  supposed  by  some  to  have 
been  adopted  or  favorably  considered  in  its 
amended  form  by  the  Council  of  Constanti- 
nople, A.  D.  381,  and  known  to  have  been 
adopted,  as  amended,  at  the  fourth  General 
Council  at  Chalcedon,  A.  D.  451,  is  the  so- 
called  NicENE  Creed  of  to-day.  It  reads  as 
follows : — 

(Note:  The  words  in  parentheses  are  used  in  and 
the  words  in  italics  are  omitted  from  the  Nicene 
Creed  used  by  the  English  Church  and  the  one 
used  by  Protestant  Churches  in  the  United  States.) 

We  (I)  believe  in  one  God  the  Father  Almighty 

Maker  of  heaven  and  earth, 

And  of  all  things  visible  and  invisible; 

And  in  one  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  the  only  begotten 

Son  of  God, 

(Begotten  of  his  Father  before  all  worlds) 
(God  of  God;) 

122 


CREEDS— FAITH  IN  WORDS 


Light  of  Light; 

Very  God  of  very  God; 

Begotten,  not  made; 

(Being)  of  one  (substance)  essence  with  the 
Father ; 

By  whom  all  things  were  made; 

Who  for  us  men,  and  for  our  salvation  came  down 

from  the  heaven. 

And  was  incarnate  by  the  Holy  Ghost  (of)  and 
(the  Virgin  Mary) 
Mary  the  Virgin, 
And  was  made  man; 

And  was  Crucified  (also  for  us)  under  Pontius 
Pilate ; 

And  (He)  suffered  and  was  buried; 
And  rose  again  the  third  day  (he  rose  again)  ac- 
cording to  the  Scriptures; 
And  ascended  into  (heaven)  the  heavens, 
(And  sitteth  on  the  right  hand  of  the  Father;) 
And  (he  shall  come)  coming  again,  with  glory,  to 
judge  (both  the  quick  and  the  dead)  living  and 
dead; 

Whose  kingdom  shall  have  no  end. 
And  (I  believe)  in  the  Holy  Ghost. 

The  portion  of  the  Nicene  Creed  as  now 
used  which  is  comparable  with  the  creed 
adopted  by  the  Council  of  Nicaea  ends  here. 
The  following  additions  were  approved  or 
adopted  by  the  Council  of  Chalcedon,  and 
now  constitute  a  part  of  the  authorized  Nicene 
Creed : — 

The  Lord  and  Giver  of  Life, 
Who  proceedeth  from  the  Father  and  the  Son; 
123 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


Who  with  the  Father  and  the  Son  is  worshipped 
and  glorified; 

Who  spake  by  the  Prophets; 

And  I  believe   in   one   Catholic  and  Apostolic 

Church : 

I  aeknoAvledge  one  Baptism  for  the  remission  of 
sins; 

And  I  look  for  the  Resurrection  of  the  dead: 
And  the  Life  of  the  world  to  come.  Amen. 

The  third  important  creed  and  the  last  one 
to  be  here  referred  to,  although  by  no  means  a 
universal  or  even  a  generally  accepted  creed 
of  Christianity,  is  nevertheless  properly  de- 
scribed as  of  historic  importance.  It  is  a 
creed  of  unknown  date  and  authorship;  its 
use  has  never  been  authorized  or  approved 
by  any  Church  Council,  and  yet  we  find  it  in 
the  Book  of  Common  Prayer  of  the  English 
Church,  preceded  by  a  direction  reading  as 
follows,  and  requiring  its  use : — 

Upon  these  Feasts:  Christmas-day,  the  Epiph- 
any, Saint  Matthias,  Easter-day,  Ascension-day, 
Whit-Sunday,  Saint  John  Baptist,  Saint  James, 
Saint  Bartholomew,  Saint  Matthew,  Saint  Simon 
and  Saint  Jude,  Saint  Andrew,  and  upon  Trinity- 
Sunday,  shall  be  sung  or  said  at  Morning  Prayer, 
instead  of  the  Apostles'  Creed,  this  Confession  of 
our  Christian  Faith,  commonly  called  The  Creed 
of  Saint  Athanasius,  by  the  Minister  and  people 
standing. 

124 


CREEDS— FAITH  IN  WORDS 


It  does  not  appear  in  the  Book  of  Common 
Prayer  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church 
of  the  United  States  of  America.  It  is  said 
to  be  used  by  the  Roman  Catholics  as  a  hymn 
but  not  as  an  authorized  creed. 

The  Athanasian  Creed 

Whosoever  will  he  saved:  before  all  things  it  is 
necessary  that  he  hold  the  Catholick  Faith. 
Which  Faith  except  every  one  do  keep  whole  and 
undefiled:  without  douht  he  shall  perish  everlast- 
ingly. 

And  the  Catholick  Faith  is  this:  That  we  worship 
one  God  in  Trinity,  and  Trinity  in  Unity; 
Neither  confounding  the  Persons :  nor  dividing  the 
Substance. 

For  there  is  one  Person  of  the  Father,  another  of 
the  Son :  and  another  of  the  Holy  Ghost. 
But  the  Godhead  of  the  Father,  of  the  Son,  and 
of  the  Holy  Ghost,  is  all  one;  the  Glory  equal,  the 
Majesty  co-etemal. 

Such  as  the  Father  is,  such  is  the  Son :  and  such  is 
the  Holy  Ghost. 

The  Father  uncrcate,  the  Son  uncreate:  and  the 
Holy  Ghost  uncreate. 

The  Father  incomprehensible,  the  Son  incomprehen- 
sible: and  the  Holy  Ghost  incomprehensible. 
The  Father  eternal,  the  Son  eternal :  and  the  Holy 
Ghost  eternal. 

And  yet  they  are  not  three  eternals ;  but  one  eternal. 
As  also  there  are  not  three  incomprehensibles,  nor 
three  uncreated :  but  one  uncreated,  and  one  incom- 
prehensible. 

125 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


So  likewise  the  Father  is  Almighty,  the  Son  Al- 
mighty :  and  the  Holy  Ghost  Almighty. 
And  yet  they  are  not  three  Almighties:  but  one 
Almighty. 

So  the  Father  is  God,  the  Son  is  God ;  and  the  Holy 
Ghost  is  God. 

And  yet  they  are  not  three  Gods :  but  one  God. 

So  likewise  the  Father  is  Lord,  the  Son  Lord:  and 

the  Holy  Ghost  Lord. 

And  yet  not  three  Lords :  but  one  Lord. 

For  like  as  we  are  compelled  by  the  Christian 

verity:  to  acknowledge  every  Person  by  himself  to 

be  God  and  Lord ; 

So  we  are  forbidden  by  the  Catholick  Religion:  to 

say. 

There  be  three  Gods,  or  three  Lords. 

The  Father  is  made  of  none:  neither  created,  nor 

begotten. 

The  Son  is  of  the  Father  alone:  not  made,  nor 
created,  but  begotten. 

The  Holy  Ghost  is  of  the  Father  and  of  the  Son: 
neither  made,  nor  created,  nor  begotten,  but  pro- 
ceeding. 

So  there  is  one  Father,  not  three  Fathers ;  one  Son, 
not  three  Sons:  one  Holy  Ghost,  not  three  Holy 
Ghosts. 

And  in  this  Trinity  none  is  afore,  or  after  other: 
none  is  greater,  or  less  than  another; 
But  the  whole  three  Persons  are  co-etemal  together : 
and  co-equal. 

So  that  in  all  things,  as  is  aforesaid:  the  Unity 
in  Trinity,  and  the  Trinity  in  Unity  is  to  be  wor- 
shipped. 

He  therefore  that  will  he  saved:  must  thus  think 
of  the  Trimty. 

126 


CREEDS— FAITH  IN  WORDS 


Furthermore,  it  is  necessary  to  everlasting  salva- 
tion: that  he  also  believe  rightly  the  Incarnation 
of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ. 

For  the  right  Faith  is,  that  we  believe  and  confess: 
that  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  the  Son  of  God,  is  God 
and  Man ;  God,  of  the  Substance  of  the  Father,  be- 
gotten before  the  worlds:  and  ^lan,  of  the  Substance 
of  his  Mother,  bom  in  the  world ; 
Perfect  God,  and  perfect  ilan :  of  a  reasonable  soul 
and  human  flesh  subsisting: 

Equal  to  the  Father,  as  touching  his  Godhead :  and 
inferior  to  the  Father,  as  touching  his  ]\Ianhood. 
Who  although  he  be  God  and  Man:  yet  he  is  not 
two,  but  one  Christ; 

One;  not  by  conversion  of  the  Godhead  into  flesh; 
but  hy  taking  the  ^lanhood  into  God ; 
One  altogether ;  not  by  confusion  of  Substance ;  but 
by  unity  of  Person. 

For  as  the  reasonable  soul  and  flesh  is  one  man :  so 
God  and  Man  is  one  Christ ; 

Who  suffered  for  our  salvation :  descended  into 
hell,  rose  again  the  third  day  from  the  dead. 
He  ascended  into  heaven,  he  sitteth  on  the  right 
hand  of  the  Father,  God  Almighty:  from  whence 
he  shall  come  to  judge  the  quick  and  the  dead. 
At  whose  coming  all  men  shall  rise  again  with  their 
bodies:  and  shall  give  account  of  their  own  works. 
And  they  that  have  done  good  shall  go  into  life 
everlasting : 

And  they  that  have  done  evil  into  everlasting  fire. 
This  is  the  Catholick  Faith:  which  except  a  man 
believe  faithfully,  he  cannot  be  saved. 
Glory  be  to  the  Father,  and  to  the  Son:  and  to 
the  Holy  Ghost ; 

As  it  was  in  the  beginning,  is  now,  and  ever  shall 
be:  world  without  end.  Amen. 


127 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


As  to  the  origin  of  this  Athanasian  creed,  so- 
called,  still  less  is  known  than  as  to  the  other 
creeds.  Authorities  agree  that  Athanasius 
never  saw  it.  It  has  never  been  adopted  by 
any  Church  Council.  It  contains  statements 
that  have  been  protested  against  by  both  min- 
isters and  people.  It  remains  in  the  English 
Book  of  Common  Prayer  apparently  because 
the  Church  authorities  fear  that  one  change 
may  mean  others.  It  is  a  mediaeval  resist- 
ance to  a  natural  development  that  must 
come.  The  Archbishop  of  Canterbury  ap- 
pointed a  committee  of  seven  theological  ex- 
perts who  are  engaged  in  preparing  a  new 
translation  of  this  creed.  The  result  of  their 
labors  may  be  to  modify  or  remove  its  objec- 
tionable features. 

In  summary,  it  may  be  said,  as  to  the  three 
important  Christian  creeds: — 

1  The  Apostles'  Creed  approaches  most 
nearly  to  the  simple  fundamental  creed  of 
Christianity.  While  some  of  its  statements 
have  been  and  are  questioned,  it  has  not  yet 
become  a  source  of  any  bitter  dissension.  It 
is  still  the  creed  of  the  people. 

2  The  Xicene  Creed  was  born  in  an  atmos- 
phere of  angry  disputation.  It  was  accepted 
by  the  Church  after  centuries  of  unchristian 

128 


CREEDS— FAITH  IN  WORDS 


contention.  It  is  a  creed  of  mystery  and  calls 
for  a  statement  of  belief  in  theories  that  the 
ordinary  human  mind  cannot  comprehend.  It 
is  not  a  creed  of  the  people. 

3  The  Athanasian  Creed,  because  of  its 
damnatory  provisions,  should  not  find  a  place 
in  any  modem  service  of  worship.  It  repre- 
sents the  height  of  man's  presumption  when 
it  declares  as  to  whoever  fails  to  believe  in  its 
theories  that  "without  doubt  he  shall  perish 
everlastingly. ' '  This  decision  rests  with  God 
alone.  Relieved  of  the  damnatory  sections, 
the  Athanasian  Creed  would  represent,  per- 
haps, the  best  effort  yet  made  to  explain  what 
must  always  remain  a  mystery — the  doctrine 
of  the  Trinity. 

In  conclusion  it  may  be  safely  asserted  that 
no  creed  can  or  should  be  an  acceptable  creed 
of  the  people  which  requires  or  permits  the 
explanation  that  it  does  not  actually  mean,  in 
any  particular,  exactly  what  its  language  im- 
plies. It  cannot  be  commendable  to  say  we 
believe  what  we  do  not.  Blind  obedience  to 
ministerial  command  may  involve  this  result. 

Such,  then,  is  the  result  of  this  imperfect 
investigation  into  the  development  of  creeds 
and  of  the  efforts  they  represent  to  express 
in  comprehensible  language  "The  Christian 
Faith."  Think  of  it!  This  wonderful  Chris- 
9  129 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


tian  religion,  which  is  spreading  over  the  face 
of  the  earth,  the  most  aggressive  of  all  known 
religions,  representing  the  faith  of  the  most 
highly  developed,  intelligent  and  civilized  na- 
tions, has  for  its  foundation  scriptural  writ- 
ings of  unknown  authorship  and  original 
authority;  summarized  in  creeds  of  like  un- 
known authorship  and  original  authority,  the 
work  of  human  beings  like  ourselves,  just  as 
full  of  faults  and  as  fond  of  power  over  their 
fellow-men  as  we  are!    Is  it  not  marvelous? 

May  not  doubting  men,  impressed  by  the 
recognized  influence  of  Christianity  upon  the 
development  of  the  human  race,  follow  that 
wise  old  Pharisee,  Gamaliel,  and  say  of  those 
who  are  humbly  striving  to  be  sincere  Chris- 
tians in  thought,  word  and  deed,  "Let  them 
alone:  for  if  this  counsel  or  this  work  be 
of  men,  it  will  come  to  nought :  but  if  it  be  of 
God,  ye  cannot  overthrow  it;  lest  haply  ye 
be  found  even  to  fight  against  God"  (Acts 
5:38,  39).  Those,  on  the  other  hand,  who 
do  not  doubt  but  who  believe  that  the  Chris- 
tian religion  is  "of  God"  thus  satisfactorily 
account  for  its  enduring  vitality  and  influence 
throughout  the  ages. 

The  Arian  Controrersy  (H.  M.  Gwatl-in,  M.  A  )  to  which 
acktiowledfrment  is  here  due,  deals)  fully  aiid  interestingly 
with  the  Arian  question. 

X30 


CREEDS-FAITH  IN  WORDS 


r 

CHAPTER  IX 

SOME  OTHER  FAITHS  AND  FACTS 

If  we  call  the  present  population  of  the 
world  fifteen  hundred  millions,  it  will  be  near 
enough  for  our  present  purpose  to  say  that 
they  may  be  divided  about  as  follows : — 


Christians   400  millions 

BuuDHisTS  (Including  Confucians)         400  millions 

Mohammedans   250  millions 

Bbahmans   150  millions 

Labuely  Pagan  or  Heathen   300  millions 


Making  the  Total  1500  millions 


In  the  four  great  religious  bodies  first  named, 
there  are  included  say  four-fifths  of  the 
world's  population,  the  Christians  alone  be- 
ing four-fifteenths  or  more  than  a  quarter 
of  the  total. 

The  following  very  brief  statements  of  a 
few  elementary'  facts  as  to  several  of  the  most 
prominent  of  these  great  religions,  other  than 
Christianity  and  Hebraism,  are  condensed  in 

131 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


part  from  Ten  Great  Religions,  by  James 
Freeman  Clarke;  from  Great  Religions  of  the 
World,  by  Professor  H.  A.  Giles,  LL.D.  and 
others;  and  from  various  encyclopedias  and 
other  standard  books  of  reference. 

BUDDHISM 

An  ancient  and  interesting  Asiatic  relig- 
ion. Buddha  is  the  name  for  a  deified 
teacher  of  the  Buddhists  who  believe  many 
Buddhas  have  appeared  to  save  the  world; 
Sakj-a-muni,  the  latest,  being  the  ninth  incar- 
nation of  Vishnu.  He  reformed  Brahman- 
ism,  substitutmg  a  humane  code  of  morality 
for  its  cruel  usage.  In  its  origin  Buddhism 
was  simple,  ethical,  rational. 

The  legendary-  history  of  the  latest  Buddha 
includes  his  birth  of  Maya,  yet  a  virgin.  He 
descended  from  heaven  on  a  white  elephant, 
having  a  miraculous  conception  and  birth. 
He  became  an  austere  ascetic;  then  a 
Buddha ;  resisted  temptation ;  two  merchants 
from  afar,  being  the  first  to  see  him,  offered 
honey,  milk,  etc.  He  appointed  apostles  and 
performed  many  miracles.  He  died  and  his 
body  was  consumed  by  miraculous  fire.  The 
date  of  his  death  is  uncertain,  differing  stor- 
ies causing  variations  of  thousands  of  years, 
132 


CREEDS— FAITH  IN  WORDS 


the  Cingalese  date,  wkicli  is  said  t-o  be  pre- 
ferred, being  543  B.  C.  Buddliism  antedates 
the  Christian  Era,  and  possesses  many  feat- 
ures in  its  Buddhas  that  singularlv  resemble 
the  attributes  of  Christ 

Celibacy  is  strictly  enjoined  upon  its 
priests.  It  resembles  the  Roman  Church  in 
its  faith  in  the  claims  made  by  its  priests  of 
the  genuineness  and  virtue  of  their  religious 
relics.  Buddha  published  many  humane 
edicts  inculcating  the  practice  of  many  vir- 
tues, ordering  the  construction  of  roads  and 
hospitals,  and  abolishing  capital  punishment. 

Buddhist  church  councils  were  held,  just 
as  Christian  church  councils  have  since  been 
held,  to  cure  anarchy  caused  by  sectarians 
and  licentious  monks.  The  decisions  of  their 
councils  were  preserved  for  long  periods  by 
oral  traditions.  Buddhism  knows  no  crea- 
tion and  teaches  annihilation  and  the  non- 
existence of  the  soul.  It  was  an  active  and 
successful  missionary  religion.  It  came  into 
conflict  with  and  to  an  extent  fused  with 
Brahmanism.  Various  differing  schools  of 
thought  developed  with  the  passing  of  time 
and  a  medley  of  incongruous  creeds  resulted, 
as  has  been  the  experience  of  other  religious 
organizations. 

133 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


CONFUCIANISM 

Confucius,  born  551  B.  C,  through  his  writ- 
ings and  system,  rules  the  religious  thought 
of  China,  the  oldest  existing  nation  of  the 
earth.  The  authentic  history  of  China  is 
said  to  begin  about  two  thousand  years  before 
Christ  and  its  oral  language  to  have  con- 
tinued unchanged  for  three  thousand  years. 
Confucius  is  believed  to  have  influenced  the 
religious  belief  of  a  greater  number  of  people 
than  any  man  who  ever  lived,  except  the  writ- 
ers of  the  Christian  Bible.  He  sought  to  im- 
plant the  purest  principles  of  religion  and 
morals  in  the  characters  of  his  people.  The 
equivalent  of  the  golden  rule  is  to  be  found 
in  his  writings.  His  doctrine  is  the  state 
religion  of  the  Chinese  nation.  His  worship 
was  not  directed  to  a  personal  God,  but  to 
antiquity,  ancestors,  propriety  and  usage,  to 
the  state  as  the  parent  of  its  subjects.  All 
Confucian  philosophy  is  said  to  be  pervaded 
by  these  principles: — 

1  That  example  is  omnipotent. 

2  That  to  secure  the  safety  of  the  empire 
you  must  secure  the  happiness  of  the  people. 

3  That  by  solitary,  persistent  thought  one 
may  penetrate  at  last  to  a  knowledge  of  the 
essence  of  things. 

134 


CREEDS— FAITH  IN  WORDS 


4  That  the  object  of  all  government  is  to 
make  the  people  virtuous  and  contented. 

MOHAMMEDANISM 

The  Arabic  word  Islam  (meaning  "full 
submission  to  God")  is  used  by  Mohamme- 
dans to  designate  the  religion  of  those  who 
accept  as  their  formula  of  faith:  "There  is 
no  God  but  Allah,  and  Mohammed  is  his 
prophet."  This  formula  or  profession  of 
faith  or  creed  is  understood  to  include  five 
essential  articles  of  religion: — 

1  The  acknowledgment  of  the  divine  unity, 
and  of  the  mission  of  Mohammed;  recital  of 
the  creed. 

2  Observance  of  prayer  at  five  appointed 
times. 

3  Almsgiving ;  payment  of  legal  alms. 

4  Keeping  the  fast  of  Ramadan. 

5  The  pilgrimage  to  Mecca. 

During  the  entire  month  Kamadan  (the 
ninth  or  hot  month),  no  food  or  drink  may 
be  taken  from  sunrise  until  the  stars  appear, 
which  commemorates  the  first  divine  revela- 
tion to  Mohammed;  there  is  also  almsgiving. 
The  little  Bairam  succeeds  the  fast  of  Rama- 
dan and  is  a  festival  of  three  days'  duration. 
Mosques  are  illuminated,  there  are  public 
135 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


receptions  by  the  Sultan,  guns  are  fired,  etc. 
These  periods  have  been  described  as  the 
Mohammedan  equivalent  of  the  Christian 
Lent  and  Easter.  Sixty  days  after  the  festi- 
val of  the  little  Bairam  is  the  feast  of  the 
greater  Bairam,  lasting  four  days. 

Mecca  was  the  birthplace  of  Mohammed. 
Each  believer  must  make  at  least  one  pil- 
grimage during  life  to  Mecca,  either  in  person 
or  by  substitute.  The  Great  Mosque,  or 
''House  of  Allah,"  or  the  Caaba  (Square 
House),  contains  the  famous  "black  stone," 
set  in  the  southeast  comer  of  the  Caaba, 
which  is  a  sacred  relic  supposed  to  have  been 
brought  from  heaven  by  angels. 

The  religion  of  Islam  dates  from  the 
seventh  century  and  is  an  aggressive  mission- 
ary religion.  It  represents  an  ideal  and 
simple  form  of  missionary  effort,  as  each  of 
its  devotees  seeks  to  illustrate  in  liis  daily 
life,  and  to  propagate,  its  faith.  Those  jour- 
neying through  other  countries  than  their 
own  for  business  or  pleasure  carry  their  faith 
with  them  and  seek  to  present  it  attractively 
to  those  with  whom  they  come  in  contact.  It 
is  a  faith  easily  understood,  the  simple  ac- 
ceptance of  AllaJi  and  Mohammed,  his 
prophet,  being  all  that  is  required  of  the  con- 

136 


CREEDS— FAITH  IN  WORDS 


vert.  Mohammedanism  is  said  to  be  declin- 
ing in  Turkey  but  spreading  rapidly  over 
Asia  and  Africa  and  to  be  supplanting  the 
ancient  religions  of  India. 

BEAHMANISM 

This,  the  religion  of  one  hundred  and  fifty 
to  two  hundred  millions  of  the  Hindoo  people, 
is  of  great  antiquity.  It  is  not  an  active 
missionary  religion;  it  has  no  sacred  books 
or  history,  no  single  personal  deity  or  for- 
mulated creed.  It  is  a  mystical  religion  with 
defined  lines  as  to  its  priests  and  a  wide  lati- 
tude as  to  its  people.  It  permits  the  worship 
of  many  gods  by  many  methods.  Its  origin 
and  founder  are  involved  in  mystery.  It  en- 
courages asceticism  and  permits  image  wor- 
ship. Its  devotees  believe  in  the  transmigra- 
tion of  souls,  and  among  them  idol  worship 
is  universal.  Drinking  intoxicating  liquor  is 
strictly  prohibited.  It  teaches  that  there  is 
only  one  absolute  Unity  really  existing,  and 
existing  without  plurality. 

It  is  said  that  in  Eastern  Asia  the  mythical 
and  the  mysterious  phases  of  Bralmianism 
have  remained  and  have  worked  together. 

The  outer  worship  for  the  people,  who  must  have 
their  innumerable  deities,  their  images,  and  their 

137 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


miraculous  legends;  the  inner  teaching  that  ex- 
plains all  these  things  as  symbolical,  as  signs  and 

shadows  of  divine  truths  Hindooism 

and  Buddhism  have  never  set  out  formal  creeds, 
containing  articles  of  faith  which  a  man  must 
accept  at  his  peril  (Lyall). 

Among  the  statements  of  its  belief  is  this 
one : — 

For  there  is  nothing  but  spirit,  which  neither 
creates  nor  is  created,  neither  acts  nor  suffers, 
which  cannot  change,  and  into  which  all  souls  are 
absorbed  when  they  free  themselves  by  meditation 
from  the  belief  that  they  suffer  or  are  happy,  that 
they  can  experience  either  pleasure  or  pain 
(Clarke). 

Some  Other  Faiths.  We  will  now  refer  to 
some  facts  of  interest  in  connection  with  a 
few  other  faiths. 

X7NITAEIANISM 

The  space  here  given  to  the  Unitarian  faith 
is  not  due  to  the  numerical  strength,  nor  to 
the  recognized  high  average  of  intelligence 
and  good  citizenship  of  its  adherents.  It  is 
due  rather  to  the  fact  that  the  Unitarians 
witli  the  Hicksite  Friends  and  the  so-called 
liberal  Hebrews  appear  to  constitute  what 
remains  of  the  school  of  thought  that  was 
represented  in  the  Council  of  Nicasa  (A.  D. 
138 


CREEDS— FAITH  IN  WORDS 


325)  by  Alius  and  his  followers;  a  school  of 
thought  prominent  in  the  theological  conten- 
tion that  continued  during  centuries,  and  that 
gave  birth  to  and  finally  established  the  Ni- 
cene  Creed  and  the  faith  which  that  creed 
represents, — a  faith  now  regarded  as  funda- 
mental by  all  organized  bodies  of  Christians. 

A  communication  to  the  New  York  Sun 
(April  9,  1909)  contains  these  statements: — 

Here  is  a  declaration  of  Unitarian  doctrines: 
"We  believe  in  the  Fatherhood  of  God,  the  brother- 
hood of  man,  the  leadership  of  Jesus,  salvation  by 
character,  the  progress  of  mankind  onward  and 
upward  forever!  ....  If  the  term  "Chris- 
tian" may  be  defined  as  "one  who  believes  in  the 
divine  character  of  Jesus;"  who  believes  that  Jesus 
is  God,  a  being  to  be  worshipped,  then  of  course  the 
Unitarians  should  not  be  called  Christians. 

In  reply  to  an  inquiry  as  to  the  points  of 
difference  between  the  Unitarian  faith  and 
the  Arian  and  the  Jewish  faiths,  the  follow- 
ing was  received  from  a  Unitarian  authority : 

The  original  and  early  Unitarians  of  England 
and  America  were  all  Arians,  so  far  as  I  know. 
Their  position  was  that  of  denying  that  the  Scrip- 
tures taught  the  deity  of  Jesus,  but  thoy  all  ascribed 
to  him,  as  the  Christ,  a  nature  altogether  superior 
to  humanity,  and  inferior  to  Deity  only.  He  was 
to  them  a  being  unique;  superior  to  all  angels;  de- 
rived from  the  Father  but  in  the  closest  possible  re- 
139 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


lations  with  Him;  reflecting  His  attributes  and 
acting  as  His  Mediator  to  men;  the  agent  of  the 
Divine  Will  in  the  world  of  humanity.  But  this 
view  gradually  loosened  and  began,  by  the  middle 
of  the  last  century  or  earlier,  to  approach  the  con- 
ception of  the  humanity  as  contrasted  with  the 
"divinity"  of  Jesus.  More  and  more  the  human 
quality  was  recognized  and  emphasized  in  him,  as 
dependence  on  the  words  of  Scripture  became  less 
literal  and  absolute,  and  as  the  influence  of  reason, 
of  historical  enquirj',  and  of  the  literary  criticism 
of  the  Bible  became  freer  and  more  effect. ve.  Thus, 
fifty  or  sixty  years  ago,  and  gradually  the  more 
as  time  progressed,  the  Unitarians  became  divided 
into  two  schools,  the  older  and  more  conservative 
holding  to  a  more  or  less  strict  Arianism;  the 
newer  and  more  progressive  more  and  more  fully 
accepting  and  asserting  the  humanitarian  view. 
The  latter  came  to  be  called  "radicals",  and,  in- 
cluding other  modifications  of  thought,  consistent 
with  the  one  in  question,  were  also  called  the  "  lib- 
eral school"  among  us.  For  many  years  Dr.  Chan. 
ning  was  regarded  as  the  type  of  the  conservative 
school,  in  respect  to  the  nature  of  Jesus,  while 
Theodore  Parker  was  the  leader  of  the  liberal,  radi- 
cal, or  humanitarian  partJ^  Fierce  used  to  be  the 
discussions  over  these  diverging  tendencies  in  our 
conferences,  in  our  publications,  Lnd  in  pulpit 
sermons !  The  conservatives  were  at  first  in  posses- 
sion of  the  field,  but  from  1850  onwards,  they  were 
steadily  losing  ground,  though  slowly. 

But,  by  degrees,  it  cannot  be  questioned  that 
the  humanitarian  interpretation  of  Jesus 's  nature 
has  spread  among  all  our  people,  and  it  is  now  the 
prevailing  one.    The  older,  Arian,  view,  or  that  in- 
140 


CREEDS— FAITH  IN  WORDS 


dining  to  Arianism,  has  not  wholly  died  out.  It 
holds  its  own  in  some  of  our  older  minds,  especially 
among  the  laity,  but  more  as  a  sentiment  than  as 
a  clear  doctrine.  There  is  even  some  hesitation 
among  many,  in  respect  to  the  unqualified  and  bald 
assertion  of  Jesus 's  humanity;  and  some  of  the 
older  phrases  which  imply  a  peculiarity  of  nature, 
if  not  a  wholly  Arian  interpretation,  survive  in 
usage.  But,  practically,  as  a  body,  the  Unitarians 
are  now  humanitarians,  at  least  in  this  country, 
and  I  think  also  in  England.  And  all  the  younger 
men  hold  this  position  without  any  qualifications 
whatever. 

Referring  now  to  the  question  of  Unitarianism 
and  Hebraism,  I  am  reluctant  to  speah  with  any 
positiveness,  yet  it  is  certainly  my  view  that  liberal 
Hebraism  and  modern  or  liberal  Unitarianism  ap- 
proach very  closely  to  each  other. 

In  fact,  on  the  general  religious  principles  and 
conceptions  of  Jesus,  (himself  a  Hebrew,  and  re- 
flecting in  his  thought  the  liberal  and  progressive 
teachings  of  his  time),  I  think  they  would  be  at 
one.  In  the  company  of  an  enlightened  and  liberal 
Hebrew  scholar  and  thinker,  I  feel  myself  wholly 
at  homCj  as  much  so  as  among  our  own  people, 
and  altogether  at  one  with  him.  Such  Hebrews 
recognize  the  spiritual  greatness  of  Jesus,  his  moral 
elevation  and  his  religious  insight,  and  they  speak 
of  him  with  the  same  sympathy,  reverence  and  love 
which  we  ourselves  feel  and  express. 

Difference  in  culture,  in  the  traditions  and  modes 
of  worship,  and  so  forth,  may  long  prevent  any 
outward  union,  but  the  existence  of  sympathy,  the 
tendency  towards  union,  is  showm  markedly  on 
many  occasions,  not  only  in  private  rciinions,  but 
141 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


in  such  public  ones  as  the  services  of  Thanksgiving 
Day,  in  which,  for  many  years,  our  Unitarian 
churches  and  one  or  two  of  the  liberal  Hebrew 
congregations  have  harmoniously  and  happily 
united,  sometimes  in  one  of  our  churches,  some- 
times in  one  of  their  synagogues,  both  in  this  and 
other  cities. 

This  clear  and  interesting  letter  seems  to 
make  it  plain  that  the  faith  of  the  modern 
Unitarian  is  substantially  identical  with  that 
of  the  liberal  Hebrew,  there  being  merely  two 
names  for  but  one  common  faith. 

CHRISTIAN  SCIENCE 

What  is  Christian  Science? 

In  the  preface  of  Mrs.  Eddy's  book  entitled 
Science  and  Health  with  Key  to  the  Scrip- 
tures, she  says: — 

Since  the  author's  discovery  of  the  adaptation 
of  Truth  to  the  treatment  of  disease  as  well  as  of 
sin ;  her  system  has  been  fully  tested,  and  has  not 
been  found  wanting;  but  to  reach  the  heights  of 
Christian  Science  man  must  live  in  obedience  to 
its  divine  Principle.  To  develop  the  full  might  of 
this  Science,  the  discords  of  corporeal  sense  must 
yield  to  the  harmony  of  spiritual  sense ;  even  as  the 
science  of  sound  corrects  false  notes  caught  by  the 
ear,  and  gives  sweet  concord  to  music  

The  testimony  of  the  corporeal  senses  cannot  in- 
form us  what  is  real  and  what  is  delusive,  but  the 
revelations  of  Christian  Science  unlock  the  treas- 
ures of  truth  

142 


CREEDS— FAITH  IN  WORDS 


Christian  Science  removes  these  (human)  beliefs 
and  hypotheses,  through  the  higher  understanding 
of  God,  for  it  rests  in  divine  Principle  in  its  revela- 
tion of  immortality,  not  on  material  personalities, 
and  so  introduces  the  harmony  of  being  

All  we  correctly  know  of  Spirit  comes  from  God, 
divine  Principle,  and  is  learned  through  Christ  and 
Christian  Science. 

Such  is  something  of  Christian  Science  as  told 
by  its  author,  but  it  is  not  possible  to  do-  full 
justice  to  her  book  and  its  teachings  in  a  few 
brief  extracts.  The  book,  to  the  minds  of 
many,  illustrates  the  inability  of  human  lan- 
guage to  convey  from  one  person  to  all  others, 
a  clear,  comprehensible  idea  of  a  complex 
purpose. 

The  religious  unrest  of  large  numbers  of 
people,  and  their  failure  to  find  what  they 
seek  in  any  of  the  existing  organizations  of 
professing  Christians,  whether  Roman  Catho- 
lic or  Protestant,  appears  to  be  clearly 
demonstrated  by  the  remarkable  growth  in 
this  country  and  elsewhere  of  that  form  of 
belief  known  as  Christian  Science.  Its  fol- 
lowing represents,  to  a  greater  or  less  de- 
gree, the  craving  for  something  better,  some- 
thing more  really  Christian  in  action,  than  is 
found  in  our  modem  life.  It  is  to  a  certain 
extent  the  same  craving  as  that  of  the  Athen- 
143 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


ians  and  strangers  of  old,  of  whom  Paul 
said : — 

For  all  the  Athenians  and  strangers  which  were 
there  spent  their  time  in  nothing  else,  but  either 
to  tellj  or  to  hear  some  new  thing  (Acts  17 : 21). 

The  same  craving  for  "some  new  thing"  was 
cited  by  Gamaliel,  who  (Acts  5:34-40)  re- 
minded the  Jewish  Council  of  the  fate  of 
Theudas  and  his  followers;  and  of  Judas  of 
Galilee,  who  "drew  away  much  people  after 
him :  he  also  perished ;  and  all,  even  as  many 
as  obeyed  him,  were  dispersed."  Gamaliel 
added  this  wise  advice: — 

Refrain  from  these  men,  and  let  them  alone:  for 
if  this  counsel  or  this  work  be  of  men,  it  will  come 
to  nought :  but  if  it  be  of  God,  ye  cannot  overthrow 
it. 

The  craving  for  new  things  is  not  necessar- 
ily an  unholy  desire  for  mere  novelty.  It 
may  and  doubtless  often  does  represent  a 
desire  for  a  change  that  means  sometliing 
higher,  something  purer,  something  more 
Christlike.  The  claims  of  Christian  Science 
must  present  themselves  to  its  adherents  in 
some  way  entirely  different  from  that  in 
which  they  impress  themselves  upon  the  mass 
of  intelligent  people. 

That  the  Christian  Science  following  has 
144 


CREEDS— FAITH  IN  WORDS 


grown  so  rapidly  when  the  foundation  of  it 
seems  so  impracticable  may  well  challenge 
serious  attention.  Instead  of  wholesale  con- 
demnation it  would  be  well  to  view  this  sin- 
gular movement  in  something  of  the  spirit 
advised  by  Dr.  Abbott,  in  The  Outlook  (July, 
1906),  who  referred  to  Christian  Science  in 
this  language : — 

The  truth  in  Christian  Science  is  its  threefold 
affirmation :  first,  that  man  is  not  a  machine,  but  a 
living  spirit,  and  his  body  is  the  servant,  not  the 
master,  of  the  spirit ;  second,  that  spiritual  truth  is 
not  merely  mediately  discoverable  by  a  scientific 
process,  but  immediately  and  directly  known  by 
spiritual  vision;  third,  that  Christianity  is  not 
merely  a  new  interpretation  of  an  ancient  law  of 
life,  but  a  new  power  to  heal,  to  vivify,  and  to 
endow ; 

and  concluded  by  saying : — 

The  way  for  the  Christian  Church  and  the  Chris- 
tian teacher  to  meet  the  errors  of  Christian  Science 
is  not  to  denounce  it  as  a  delusion  and  a  lie;  but 
to  teach  with  greater  clearness  and  power  the  three 
truths  of  which  its  votaries  regard  themselves  as 
peculiar  prophets;  namely  the  spiritual  nature  of 
man,  the  immediacy  of  the  Soul's  knowledge  of  the 
spiritual  world,  and  the  curative  power  of  Chris- 
tianity; and  to  teach  these  truths  freed  from  the 
accompanying  errors  of  Christian  Science  that  the 
body  is  but  a  shadow,  spiritual  visions  are  infallible 
guides,  and  the  cure  for  evil,  whether  moral  or 
physical,  is  thinking  that  it  does  not  exist. 
10  145 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 

In  some  respects  Christian  Science  appears 
to  be  a  composite  faith,  embracing  something 
of  Christianity  and  something  of  the  mysti- 
cism of  Brahmanism.  Whatever  of  novelty 
it  possesses  appears  to  be  due  to  the  com- 
bination and  not  to  be  in  any  way  elemental. 
It  was  a  wise  man  who  said, ' '  There  is  no  new 
thing  under  the  sun" !    (Eccles.  1:9.) 

DUNKERS 

In  concluding  this  consideration  of  the  de- 
velopment of  creeds,  it  will  be  interesting  to 
refer  to  the  illustration  given  by  Benjamin 
Franklin  (Bigelow's  Life)  of  a  serious  dis- 
advantage that  attaches  of  necessity  to  any 
unalterable  creed  or  articles  of  faith.  He 
tells  how  he  advised  one  of  the  founders  of 
the  sect  of  Dunkers  to  publish  the  articles 
of  their  belief  so  as  to  stop  the  abuse  to 
which  they  were  then  being  subjected.  The 
Dunker  replied : — 

When  we  were  first  drawn  together  as  a  society, 
it  had  pleased  God  to  enlighten  our  minds  so  far  as 
to  see  that  some  doctrines,  which  we  once  esteemed 
truths,  were  errors,  and  that  others,  which  we  had 
esteemed  errors,  were  real  truths.  From  time  to 
time  He  has  been  pleased  to  afford  us  farther  light, 
and  our  principles  have  been  improving,  and  our 
errors  diminishing.    Now  we  are  not  sure  that  we 

146 


CREEDS— FAITH  IN  WORDS 

are  arrived  at  the  end  of  this  progression,  and  at 
the  perfection  of  spiritual  or  theological  knowledge, 
and  we  fear  that,  if  we  should  once  print  our  con- 
fession  of  faith,  we  should  feel  ourselves  as  if 
bound  and  confined  by  it,  and  perhaps  be  unwilling 
to  receive  farther  improvement,  and  our  successors 
still  more  so,  as  conceiving  what  we,  their  ciders 
and  founders,  had  done,  to  be  something  sacred, 
never  to  be  departed  from. 

CONCLUSION 

One  cannot  attempt  even  the  most  super- 
ficial examination  of  the  various  faiths  of  the 
world's  people  without  being  deeply  im- 
pressed with  the  differing  needs  of  different 
individuals  and  races  of  men  and  the  prac- 
tical difficulty,  perhaps  undesirability,  attend- 
ing any  effort  with  our  present  experience  to 
harmoniously  unite  all  classes  and  conditions 
of  men  inhabiting  all  parts  of  the  earth's 
surface  under  any  one  denominational,  relig- 
ious standard.  What  the  future  may  have 
in  store  for  the  human  race  is  known  only 
to  the  Creator. 


PART  III 
DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


DEEDS-FAITH  IN  ACTION 


r 

CHAFfER  X 

CHRISTIAN  UNITY  IN  EFFORT 

All  individual  Christians  and  all  Christian 
churches  unite  in  a  belief  in  ''One  God  the 
Father  Almighty,  Maker  of  Heaven  and 
Earth"  and  in  what  we  call  the  Bible,  which 
contains  such  facts  about  himself  as  it  has 
pleased  God  to  make  known  to  man  through 
what  is  now  a  printed  record. 

When  men  began  to  think  about  the  story 
that  is  now  recorded  in  our  Bible,  there  soon 
came  into  existence  different  theories  as  to 
just  what  was  the  meaning  of  the  message 
conveyed.  Each  new  theorist  with  his  follow- 
ers, constituted  what  we  now  call  a  "sect" 
or  * '  denomination. ' '  With  further  study  and 
thought  came  other  theories  breaking  each 
original  sect  into  fragments,  these  fragments 
to  be  again  divided  and  subdivided  with  the 
passing  of  time.  And  so  we  have  sects  in- 
numerable, none  entirely  right  and  none  en- 
151 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 

tirely  wrong.  The  competitive  method,  to 
which  the  world  owes  so  much  of  its  material 
progress,  appears  to  have  been  also  the 
method  designed  by  the  Creator  to  stimulate 
interest  and  activity  in  the  dissemination  of 
religious  knowledge.  Each  individual  and 
each  sect  should  guard  against  the  too  evident 
danger  of  mistaking  the  shadow  for  the  sub- 
stance. There  is  always  danger  of  forgetting 
that  the  Bible  message  is  God's  work, and  that 
the  innumerable  theories  growing  out  of  it 
merely  represent  the  opinions  and  prejudices* 
of  men.  A  theory  that  may  have  been  allow- 
able, nay,  even  commendable,  in  an  early  day, 
may  be  inexcusable  in  the  light  of  the  twen- 
tieth century.  And  yet  in  matters  religious,  as 
in  nothing  else,  men  and  women  incline  to  rev- 
erence theories  and  methods  merely  because 
of  their  age  and  regardless  often  of  their  evi- 
dent weaknesses  and  errors.  We  are  apt  to 
forget  what  history  tells  us  of  those  whose 
works  we  still  allow  to  govern  and  guide  us. 
If  we  are  to  believe  the  records  of  their  times, 
many  of  these  men,  if  living  in  the  present 
generation,  would  be  accepted  by  no  one  as 
interpreters  and  guides  in  matters  religious. 
Why  consider  their  work  as  sacred? 
**  Christian  unity  in  effort"  should  find  its 
152 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


foundation  in  a  belief  first  in  God  and  then 
in  the  Bible.  It  may  with  cautious  steps 
move  forward,  building  upon  this  foundation 
a  creed  which  must  include  of  necessity  a 
general  faith  in  Christ;  adding  the  exact 
wording  of  the  Lord's  Prayer ;  reaffirming  the 
living  Mosaic  law  as  found  in  the  summing 
up  of  the  Commandments  by  Christ;  then  the 
Golden  Rule  and  other  simple,  fundamental 
Bible  truths,  as  to  which  there  should  be 
no  more  important  difference  of  opinion  be- 
tween Christians  than  there  is  as  to  the  exist- 
ence of  God  himself.  It  would  appear  pos- 
sible to  establish  in  this  way  a  Bible  founda- 
tion, upon  which  all  Christians  may  stand  in 
security  and  in  unity.  Beyond  this  is  the 
region  of  uncertainty  and  theory  into  which 
each  man,  or  body  of  men,  may  reverently 
enter  at  his  or  their  own  peril.  It  is  probable 
that  uncertainties  will  be  found,  theories  will 
differ  and  sects  exist  so  long  as  the  world 
lasts.  The  Creator  may  have  elected  that  it 
is  on  these  lines  he  wishes  his  work  to  con- 
tinue to  be  carried  on.  Let  us  recognize  this 
possibility.  Add,  by  universal  consent  only, 
a  new  plank  to  the  common  platform  from 
time  to  time  as  the  good  work  goes  on,  and 
meanwhile  let  every  honest  man  respect  the 
153 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


purposes  and  theories  of  every  other  sincere 
seeker  after  truth,  whether  he  shares  in  the 
conclusions  to  which  they  lead  or  not.  It 
is  questionable  whether  any  other  unity  is, 
humanly  speaking,  possible  or — shall  we  say  ? 
— desirable. 

The  teaching  of  Christ  and  his  apostles  as 
gathered  by  a  layman,  from  the  New  Testa- 
ment record,  was  a  very  simple  form  of 
teaching.  It  was  chiefly  preaching,  and  the 
most  important  of  it  without  form  or  cere- 
mony, with  occasional  miracles,  so-called, 
possibly  designed  in  part  to  startle  the  people 
and  command  their  attention.  Forms  and 
ceremonies  there  were  in  the  Jewish  Church ; 
and  forms  and  ceremonies  there  have  been 
since  the  early  centuries  of  the  present  era  in 
the  Christian  churches.  They  may,  or  may 
not,  permanently  continue  to  be  an  important 
factor  in  the  great  work  of  the  Church.  They 
are  not,  when  continued  beyond  an  elementary 
stage,  what  we  would  expect  to  make  true, 
simple-minded,  spiritual  and  intelligent 
Christians,  the  sort  of  Christians  made  by 
Christ  himself.  Some  kind  of  church  organ- 
ization is  essential  to  the  continuity  and  suc- 
cessful prosecution  of  any  extended  Christian 
work,  and  it  should  be  adapted  to  the  con- 
154 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


ditions  existing  at  the  time  and  in  the  place 
where  the  work  is  to  be  done. 

Christ  chose  twelve  apostles,  giving  them 
great  powers,  including  the  power  to  work 
miracles.  He  sent  them  forth  to  carry  the 
message  over  a  growing  field  and  to  many 
people;  and  then,  "After  these  things  the 
Lord  appointed  other  seventy  also,  and  sent 
them  two  and  two  before  his  face  into  every 
city  and  place,  whither  he  himself  would 
come."  The  harvest  was  proving  to  be  so 
great  that  these  additional  laborers  were 
needed.  The  organization  was  expanded  to 
meet  the  changed  conditions. 

The  first  important  duty  devolving  upon  the 
apostles  after  the  ascension  of  Christ  was  the 
selection  of  one  to  succeed  Judas.  Read  in 
Acts  1 : 21-26  how  this  duty  was  performed, 
and  compare  it  with  the  methods  pursued  to- 
day when  there  is  a  vacancy  to  be  filled  in  any 
high  ofifice  in  any  of  the  Church  organizations. 
The  apostles  reverently  appointed  two  from 
those  who  had  been  with  them  "all  the  time 
that  the  Lord  Jesus  went  in  and  out  among 
us"  [them].  Then  they  prayed,  asked  the 
Lord  to  guide  the  choice  from  the  lots  they 
were  about  to  give  forth  "and  the  lot  fell 
upon  Matthias:  and  he  was  numbered  with 
155 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


the  eleven  apostles."  Sincerity,  simplicity 
and  faith  then  guided  the  followers  of  the 
Master.  Do  they  do  so  now?  Should  they 
not! 

So  the  good  work  went  on  until  it  demanded 
another  modification  of  method.  The  breth- 
ren were  then  asked  by  the  apostles  to  look 
out  from  among  them  "seven  men  of  honest 
report,  full  of  the  Holy  Ghost  and  wisdom," 
to  relieve  the  apostles  of  the  serving  of  tables. 
The  apostles  laid  their  hands  upon  the  men 
thus  chosen,  in  pursuance  of  their  right  of 
appointment.  This  was  done  so  that  the 
apostles  might  give  themselves  continually 
to  prayer,  and  to  the  ministry  of  the  word." 
So  the  organization  continued  to  develop  to 
meet  changed  conditions,  and  so  it  was  no 
doubt  intended  it  shall  continue  to  change 
and  develop  as  necessary  to  best  deserve,  and 
so  command,  the  greatest  results  from  the 
passing  ages. 

Theories  existed  in  that  early  day  as  they 
do  now.  Paul  found  it  necessary  to  tell  the 
Corinthians  it  had  been  declared  unto  him 
"tliat  there  are  contentions  among  you." 
One  part  followed  Paul,  one  Apollos,  another 
Cephas,  and  still  another  followed  Christ. 
And,  curiously,  Paul,  asking  them,  as  theor- 
156 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


ists  might  be  asked  today,  "Is  Christ 
divided!"  and  taking  them  all  to  task,  thanks 
God  that  he  baptized  none  of  them,  except  the 
few  he  names.  He  adds, ' '  Christ  sent  me  not 
to  baptize,  but  to  preach  the  gospel."  It  is 
evident  that  preaching  the  gospel  was  at  that 
time  the  great  and  necessary  Christian  work. 
Is  it  not  so  to-day? 

There  are  various  theories  of  church  gov- 
ernment to-day,  the  theorists  of  each  school 
of  thought  appearing  honestly  to  believe  that 
they  alone  follow  the  ancient  practices  and 
are  therefore  right.  The  fact  appears  to  be 
that  at  certain  times  and  in  certain  places 
the  recognized  form  of  church  government  in 
the  olden  time  was  through  bishops,  presby- 
ters and  deacons ;  while  at  certain  other  times 
and  in  certain  other  places  the  recognized 
form  of  church  government  was  through  pres- 
byters of  equal  authority  and  power.  Does 
not  this  suggest  the  original  adoption  and 
the  development  of  such  differing  forms  of 
church  organizations  as  were  found  necessary 
to  command  the  best  results  at  various  times 
and  under  varying  conditions? 

Such  were  the  facts  and  conditions  in  the 
earliest  church  period  of  which  we  have  any 
undisputed  history.  It  was  no  doubt  divinely 
so  ordered  then;  why  not  now? 

157 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 

And  then,  if  we  assent  for  the  sake  of  argu- 
ment to  the  claun  that  the  form  of  church 
government  by  bishops,  presbyters  and  dea- 
cons, or  that  by  presbyters  of  equal  authority 
each  with  the  others,  was  established  by  the 
apostles,  and  was  in  universal  use  in  their 
time,  where  do  we  find  anything  commanding 
that  this  early  form,  used  in  a  comparatively 
limited  territory  and  under  peculiar  condi- 
tions attaching  to  a  new  religious  system, 
shall  continue  to  be  the  only,  or  even  the  best, 
form  of  government  in  all  ages  and  over  the 
face  of  the  entire  earth!  In  every  other 
direction  we  find  a  law  of  individual  initiative 
and  progressive  change.  Why  not  in  the 
methods  of  church  government! 

The  Lord  in  his  good  time  brought  about 
the  invention  of  the  printing  press  (1438) 
and  the  widespread  dissemination  of  the  Bible 
truths  (Luther— German  Bible— 1534;  Tyn- 
dale — English  Bible — 1526),  so  that  men, 
women  and  children  everywhere  thereafter 
could  read  the  simple  Bible  story  and  tell  it 
to  others.  This  was  one  of  the  greatest  of 
the  Lord's  miracles.  It  brought  with  it 
knowledge,  the  personal  responsibility  of  the 
intelligent  individual,  and  the  necessity  for 
a  change  in  church  organization  and  methods 
158 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


to  meet  this  changed  condition.  It  came  not 
to  destroy  but  to  fulfill. 

It  is  interesting  to  note  the  fate  of  the  most 
important  early  translators  of  the  English 
Bible  for  the  use  of  the  plain  people.  John 
Wyclif,  one  of  these  translators,  was  perse- 
cuted, and  died  in  1334.  Manuscript  copies 
of  his  English  translation  axe  said  to  have 
circulated  among  the  people  at  a  cost  of  £40 
each.  By  a  decree  of  the  Church  Council  of 
Constance  (1415)  the  body  of  "Wyclif  was 
disinterred,  burned  and  the  ashes  flung  into 
the  little  River  Swift  (1428)  near  his  ''former 
church  at  Lutterworth. ' '  This  was  the  action 
of  a  council  of  the  supreme  authorities  of  a 
Christian  Church!  What  reverence  should 
to-day  be  paid  to  any  of  the  work  of  such  a 
council? 

William  Tyndale,  another  translator  (bom 
1484),  went  to  Hamburg  (1524)  to  escape  per- 
secution by  the  church  authorities  in  England, 
thence  to  Worms,  and  there  in  exile,  poverty 
and  distress  he  completed  the  translation  into 
English  and  the  printing  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment and  of  an  important  part  of  the  Old 
Testament.  And  what  was  his  fate?  Treach- 
erously betrayed  into  the  hands  of  his  relig- 
ious enemies,  held  for  a  time  in  prison  from 
159 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 

which,  sick  and  suffering,  he  fruitlessly 
prayed  for  covering  to  protect  himself  from 
the  cold,  he  was  finally  taken,  strangled  at 
the  stake,  and  burned  to  ashes.  All  this 
cruelty  was  perpetrated  in  the  name  of 
Christ !  Again  we  ask  what  reverence  should 
to-day  be  given  to  the  beliefs  or  utterances  of 
the  representatives  of  such  a  Christian 
Church? 

It  was  found  then,  as  it  will  probably  be 
found  always,  that  priests  and  ministers,  like 
laymen,  loved  power,  and  to  help  them  retain 
power  over  their  fellow-men,  they  preached 
false  doctrines  and  pursued  wrong,  hypocriti- 
cal practices  for  which  they  claimed  Bible 
authority.  When  the  Lord  placed  the  Bible 
in  the  hands  of  the  people  these  frauds  were 
detected  and  condemned,  a  new  church  or- 
ganization was  formed  closer  to  the  people 
and  their  modern  needs,  with  a  seeming  pos- 
sibility of  escaping  many  of  the  abuses  and 
evils  that  had  developed  under  the  old  forms. 
This  was  the  Lord's  work  and  it  has  resulted 
in  adding  untold  millions  to  the  roll  of  Chris- 
tian believers  in  all  parts  of  the  world. 
Wherever  people  are  free,  intelligent  and  in- 
dependent in  thought,  there  men  and  women 
accept  their  individual  responsibility  and 
160 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


wish  to  stand  face  to  face  with  their  Creator, 
recognizing  the  need  for  organized  church 
effort,  but  not  the  need  for  any  intermediary 
in  making  their  penitent  confessions  to  their 
Maker  of  their  weaknesses  and  sins,  and  in 
receiving  his  pardon.  This  is  the  Lord's 
method  that  has  so  wonderfully  contributed 
toward  Christianizing  the  world.  It  can 
never  permanently  give  place  to  any  theory 
of  church  organization  or  method  that  at- 
tempts to  relieve  the  competent  individual 
soul  from  the  duty  and  responsibility  of 
working  out  its  own  salvation. 

The  fundamental  Christian  creed,  we  re- 
peat, is  and  must  be  a  childlike  faith  in  God 
and  in  his  revealed  message,  as  it  is  found 
in  the  Bible.  With  this  must  go  a  clear 
realization  of  the  fact  that  no  man ,  body  of 
men,  or  church  has  any  knowledge  essential 
to  salvation  except  that  to  be  found  in  the 
Bible  by  every  intelligent  reader  of  that 
sacred  book.  And  in  reverently  studying  the 
revealed  word  we  will  do  well  to  remember 
that  other  men  as  honest  and  sincere  as  our- 
selves may  find  in  it  lessons  that  are  as  yet 
hidden  from  us.  We  must  not  disbelieve 
merely  because  we  do  not  understand.  Faith 
may  exist  without  what  we  commonly  call 
n  161 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 

belief.  Belief  implies  knowledge.  Faith 
may  represent  a  simple,  childlike  trust  with- 
out knowledge.  It  is  the  *  *  evidence  of  things 
not  seen."  It  has  been,  is  and  always  will 
be  a  mighty  power  in  the  world.  Christian 
unity  in  effort"  solidly  founded  upon  faith  in 
God  and  the  Bible,  may  be  a  unity  of  funda- 
mental faith  and  purpose,  and  it  may  admit 
of  a  variety  of  methods.  Such  a  unity,  it  is 
easy  to  conceive,  could  be  consistent  with 
widely  differing  individual  preferences  as  to 
all  nonessentials.  Sects,  or  denominations  as 
we  call  them,  must  exist  so  long  as  men  con- 
tinue to  differ  in  their  capacities  and 
environments. 

Church  organizations  and  methods  should 
adapt  themselves  to  existing  local  conditions 
and  needs,  if  great  results  are  to  be  accom- 
plished. Life  is  a  continual  struggle  for 
large  masses  of  people.  Many  men  and 
women  labor  with  their  hands  from  early 
morning  until  late  at  night  and  secure  as  the 
result  of  their  labors  only  the  food  and  cloth- 
ing absolutely  necessary  to  keep  themselves 
and  their  families  alive.  Such  men  and  wo- 
men have  little  time  or  opportunity  to  seek 
God  in  the  Bible.  Wliatever  they  learn  must 
be  told  to  them  in  simple  language  aided, 
162 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


perhaps,  by  methods  that  challenge  their  at- 
tention and  interest.  They  are  children  in 
their  mental  attitude  toward  religious  faith 
and  duty,  and  may,  perhaps,  be  best  reached 
through  kindergarten  methods  in  the  effort  to 
convey  to  them  a  knowledge  of  the  alphabet 
of  religion.  They  may  be  taught  the  letters ; 
may  find  interest  in  the  colored  pictures  and 
many  shaped  blocks,  and  may  be  led  by 
patient  teachers  to  build  the  blocks  into  use- 
ful structures.  There  is  room  in  every  relig- 
ious organization  for  those  who  do  this  work, 
and  it  is  a  necessary  work.  In  this  infancy 
of  religious  growth  the  teacher  may  well  be 
called  a  father,  as  his  pupil  is  a  child.  As 
a  father  he  should  carefully  train  and  develop 
his  child  in  the  grave  responsibilities  that 
must  be  met  in  life,  pointing  out  patiently 
and,  it  may  be,  deciding  for  the  child  the  dif- 
ference between  right  and  wrong  and  even 
promising  that  God  will  forgive  wrong  done, 
when  truly  repented  of.  It  is  a  great  work 
thus  to  elevate  and  guide  masses  of  men  and 
women  for  whom  the  only  early  instruction 
possible  is  that  suited  to  the  mental  needs  of 
a  child. 

A  grave  responsibility  is,  however,  assumed 
in  thus  undertaking  to  answer  for  other  lives, 

163 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 

and  no  possible  conditions  will  justify  any 
lack  of  effort  so  to  develop  the  child-pupils 
as  to  make  their  continued  dependence 
unnecessary.  No  one  should  be  confined  to 
receiving  mere  instruction  of  dependence  on 
other  men  longer  than  is  clearly  unavoidable. 
Nor  can  there  be  any  excuse,  even  in  this 
child  stage,  for  any  deception  on  the  part  of 
the  teacher,  nor  for  any  claim  by  him  to 
powers  he  does  not  possess.  While  arbi- 
trary teaching  is  thus  recognized  as  a  neces- 
sary part  of  the  religious  work  of  the  world, 
it  is  nevertheless  equally  a  fact  that  no  re- 
ligious effort  can  be  commendable  that  keeps 
any  man,  woman  or  child  in  subjection  one 
hour  longer  than  the  time  within  which  they 
may  be  developed  into  intelligent,  individual 
seekers  after  God  in  his  revealed  word,  each 
responsible  directly  to  God  for  the  effort  put 
forth  and  for  its  result. 

And  so  passing  from  such  legitimate  ele- 
mentary work,  we  come  to  a  great  and  grow- 
ing body  of  men  and  women  who,  with  vary- 
ing degrees  of  intelligence  and  industry,  are 
striving  to  know  and  do  God's  will.  Here 
again  we  meet  with  the  need  for  many  sects. 
Methods  suitable  for  one  sect  of  faithful  seek- 
ers after  truth  are  not  best  adapted  to  the 
164 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


needs  of  others.  Let  us  therefore  recognize 
the  need  for  variety  in  method,  only  asking 
for  unity  in  fundamental  faith,  purpose  and 
eifort.  True  religion  must  be  consistent  with 
direct  and  simple  methods,  such  methods  as 
we  find  in  the  life  and  teaching  of  Christ 
himself. 

No  man  or  woman,  who  by  education  and 
environment  is  fitted  to  seek  his  or  her  own 
salvation,  can  safely  neglect  this  personal 
work  and  attempt  to  rely  upon  any  church, 
or  priest  or  minister  of  a  church,  to  be  an 
intermediaiy  between  the  Creator  and  his 
creature.  Churches  that  discourage,  or  fail 
to  strive  to  inspire,  personal  effort  on  the 
part  of  every  intelligent  individual  to  seek 
his  own  salvation,  and  to  help  others  so  to  do, 
assume  a  grave  responsibility  for  which  there 
must  certainly  be  a  future  accounting.  There 
are  some  responsibilities  that  may  not  be 
transferred.  The  perfection  of  organized 
effort,  to  be  spoken  of  more  fully  in  a  later 
chapter,  whether  in  the  industrial  or  religious 
field,  must  be  represented  by  a  combination  of 
intelligent,  self-respecting,  individual  units, 
each  contributing  in  honesty  and  sincerity  the 
best  there  is  in  him  or  her  toward  the  common 
purpose  sought  to  be  accomplished. 

165 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


If  we  desire  such  results  in  our  Christian 
national  life  as  may  be  thus  attained,  let  us 
unite  in  establishing  right  methods.  Let  us 
inscribe  on  our  banners  for  the  forward 
movement  a  demand  for  "Christian  unity  in 
effort"  founded  on  a  simple  faith  in  God  and 
the  Bible,  extended  to  include  Bible  facts  as 
to  which  there  are  no  differences  of  theory, 
and  respecting  the  opinions  of  others  where 
they  differ  from  our  own,  provided  they  do 
not  vary  from  the  fundamental  faith  to  which 
all  will  have  subscribed.  We  will  then  have 
ceased  to  say,  either  as  individuals  or  as 
church  bodies,  '*God,  I  thank  thee,  that  I  am 
not  as  other  men  are. '  *  Each  will  then  truly 
love  and  respect  his  neighbor  as  himself. 
In  an  interesting  and  able  address  upon 
Christian  Unity  and  Unchristian  Division," 
at  the  conference  of  Church  (Protestant 
Episcopal)  clubs,  held  in  New  York  City  on 
April  28,  1909,  George  Wharton  Pepper 
said : — 

The  instant  you  define  Christianity  you  are 
amazed  to  find  an  essential  unity  between  the 
Churches,  where  all  had  seemed  diversity. 

Christianity  is  devotion  to  the  Person  of  Our 
Lord.  You  will  understand  that  I  am  limiting  my 
remarks  to  those  groups  of  people  who  acknowledge 
the  Divinity  of  Our  Lord,  and  proclaim  that  loyalty 

166 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


to  Him  as  the  Son  of  God  is  at  the  foundation  of 
their  religious  system.  All  who  profess  this  faith 
agree  that  a  determined  effort  to  be  Christ-like  is 
the  only  admissible  evidence  of  loyalty.  j\Ioreover 
it  can  hardly  be  disputed  that  efforts  to  be  Christ- 
like are  being  made  with  a  substantially  equal  meas- 
ure of  success  in  every  Christian  group. 

It  fairly  startles  us,  therefore,  when  we  realize 
that  the  divisions  between  the  Churches  are  divis- 
ions neither  in  respect  to  the  theoretical  essence  of 
Christianity  nor  as  to  the  practical  manifestation 
of  Christianity. 

In  the  interest  of  this  "Christian  unity  in 
effort"  time  may  be  expected  to  bring  about 
changes  in  some  of  the  professions  of  faith 
contained  in  the  Apostles'  Creed  before  re- 
ferred to.  Willie  the  passing  ages  have 
brought  and  must  continue  to  bring  this  need 
for  change  in  all  things,  the  Apostles'  Creed 
stands  to-day,  in  view  of  its  past,  as  the 
simplest  and  most  satisfactory  of  the  existing 
creeds.  Consider  it  for  a  moment.  How 
little  more  does  any  one  need  than  its  brief 
but  comprehensive  statement  of  belief  in 
God?  Then  the  mysterious  union  of  God  and 
Man  that  exists  in  Jesus  Christ!  He  is  de- 
scribed as  the  Son  of  God,  and  our  Lord. 
The  holy  mystery  of  his  conception  and  birth, 
although  already  tlireatening  division  among 
us,  is  only  in  degree  more  profoundly  mys- 

167 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


terious  than  the  conception  and  birth  of  every 
other  man.  Then  Christ's  life  as  a  man !  He 
was  conceived,  born,  he  suffered,  died,  and 
was  buried.  Was  ever  the  history  and 
mystery  of  human  life  more  simply  and 
graphically  described?  As  to  that  myster- 
ious realm  toward  which  we  are  all  journey- 
ing and  about  which  we  know  so  little — the 
life  after  death,  we  declare  our  faith  in 
Christ's  resurrection,  ascension  and  near- 
ness to  God. 

It  is  truly  a  marvelous  record!  All  that 
follows  is  equally  brief  and  most  of  it  con- 
tinues for  the  present  to  be  generally  accept- 
able. If  one  could  reverently  and  safely  sug- 
gest still  another  creed,  with  the  hope  of 
simplifying  those  in  present  use  in  the  inter- 
est of  "  Christian  unity  in  effort"  and  endeav- 
oring to  secure  something  even  more  gener- 
ally comprehensible  and  acceptable  to  the 
present  generation,  might  it  be  by: — 

1  Omitting  the  words  "He  descended  into  Hell" 
and  the  words  "The  Communion  of  Saints."  For 
these  omissions  we  would  have  the  authority  of  the 
earliest  of  the  great  Councils  of  the  Church  (A.D, 
325)  and  of  the  more  recent  action  of  other  church 
bodies. 

2  Omitting  the  word  "Catholic"  and  allowing  the 
creed  to  read,  as  the  most  ancient  of  the  creeds  did 
read,  "The  Holy  Church."  A  creed  for  general 
use  should  be  self -interpreting.    The  word  ' '  Catho- 

168 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


lie"  does  not  mean  "Universal,"  to  the  mass  of 
the  people  who  have  souls  to  save.  If  retained  in 
the  creed  it  would  be  apparently  clearer  and  there- 
fore better  to  say,  "Holy  Church  Universal";  but 
it  might  be  even  more  generally  acceptable  and 
accord  better  with  the  facts  if  it  read  "The  Holy 
Christian  Church"  or  "A  Holy  Christian 
Church"? 

3  Some  uncertainties  and  troubles  would  disap- 
pear from  many  minds  if  we  again  resort  to  the 
language  of  the  first  important  Council  of  the 
Christian  Church  and  declare  our  belief  in  "The 
Resurrection  of  the  dead"  instead  of  in  "The 
Resurrection  of  the  body";  and  in  "the  Life  of  the 
world  to  come"  instead  of  "the  Life  everlasting." 

4  Also  instead  of  "And  sitteth  on  the  right  hand 
of  God"  read  "to  the  right  hand  of  God"  or  "to 
the  Father." 

Then  it  certainly  appears  desirable  that  a 
confession  of  faith,  forming  a  fundamental 
part  of  current  church  services,  shall  in  these 
days  contain: — 

1  A  declaration  of  belief  in  the  Bible  as  a  whole, 
instead  of  continuing  to  be  merely  of  belief  in  cer- 
tain theories  of  men,  stated  in  "creeds,"  as  to 
what  the  Bible  means  or  is  supposed  to  mean  in 
relation  to  a  few  of  its  important  messages  for 
man's  guidance. 

2  A  declaration  of  our  duty  to  search  the  Scrip- 
tures and  to  love  God  and  our  neighbor.  Not  a 
suggestion  of  any  of  these  duties  of  governing 
importance  in  our  daily  lives,  is  to  be  found  in  any 
existing  creed. 

169 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


Evidences  of  true  Christian  love  for  one's 
neighbor  are  not  conspicuous  in  the  religious 
history  of  the  times  in  "u-hich  the  old  creeds 
came  into  existence.  Is  it  not  time  to  change 
all  this? 

The  following  are  alternate  suggestions  for 
a  basis  creed  in  the  interest  of  "Christian 
unity  in  effort": — 

First: — I  believe  in  God  the  Father  Almighty, 
Maker  of  heaven  and  earth;  And  in  His  Holy 
Bible : 

And  in  Jesus  Christ  his  onlj'  Son  our  Lord : 

Who  was  conceived  by  the  Holy  Ghost, 

Born  of  the  Virgin  Mary: 

Suffered  under  Pontius  Pilate, 

Was  crucified,  dead,  and  buried: 

The  third  day  he  rose  from  the  dead: 

He  ascended  to  the  Father; 

He  shall  judge  the  quick  and  the  dead. 

I  believe  in  the  Holy  Ghost : 

And  in  a  holy  Christian  Church ;  and  I  believe  it  is 
my  duty  to  search  the  Scriptures ;  and  to  love  the 
Lord  my  God  with  all  my  heart  and  soul  and 
mind,  and  my  neighbor  as  myself ; 

And  I  believe  in  the  forgiveness  of  sins : 

The  Resurrection  of  the  dead: 

And  the  Life  of  the  world  to  come.  Amen. 

Second : — I  believe  that  the  Supreme  Unseen  Power 
existing  everywhere  in  nature  and  that  we  call 
God,  made  and  rules  the  heavens  and  the  earth 
and  all  the  host  of  them : 
170 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


And  that  he  gave  us  our  Holy  Bible,  the  Scriptures 

of  the  Old  and  New  Testament: 
I  therefore  believe  I  should  search  the  Scriptures 

to  learn  the  will  of  God : 
Prom  them  I  have  learned  and  believe : 
That  Jesus  Christ  is  the  Son  of  God  and  my 

Saviour : 

That  he  was  conceived  by  the  Holy  Ghost, 

Born  of  the  Virgin  Mary : 

Suffered  under  Pontius  Pilate, 

Was  crucified,  dead  and  buried: 

That  the  third  day  he  rose  again: 

Ascended  to  the  Father: 

And  shall  judge  the  quick  and  the  dead. 

And  I  believe  in  the  Holy  Ghost,  the  Comforter: 

And  in  a  holy  Christian  Church  composed  of  all 
who  love  our  Saviour  and  seek  to  do  his  will ; 

And  that  God  for  Christ's  sake  will  forgive  my 
sins  if  I  am  truly  penitent,  and  when  my  life 
here  has  ended  will  receive  me  into  the  life  of  the 
world  to  come: 

And  I  believe  it  is  my  duty  to  love  the  Lord  my  God 
with  all  my  heart  and  with  all  my  soul  and  with 
all  my  mind: 

And  my  neighbor  as  myself,  as  Christ  did  com- 
mand ; 

And  to  strive  to  conform  in  my  daily  life  to  the 
faith  I  here  profess.  Amen. 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


r 

CHAPTER  XI 

CHURCH  HISTORY  AND  GOVERNMENT 

Faith  in  action  finds  its  most  effective 
expression  through  organized  effort.  It  may 
be  helpful  briefly  to  consider  the  histories 
and  the  forms  of  organization  in  use  by  some 
of  the  religious  denominational  families  hav- 
ing the  largest  following  in  the  United  States, 
and  to  endeavor  to  understand  something  of 
their  general  theories  of  government.  It 
would  not  be  possible,  within  the  limits  of  this 
work,  to  follow  all  of  the  differences  in  detail 
between  the  members  of  each  family.  All 
that  has  been  here  attempted  is  to  give  in 
condensed  form  some  facts  relating  to  one 
and  that  usually  the  oldest  member  of  each 
family. 

The  United  States  Census  properly  directs 
attention  to  the  fact  that  its  statistical  record 
of  the  numbers  of  communicants  in  the 
various  religious  denominations,  if  taken 

172 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


alone,  conveys  a  wrong  impression  of  their 
relative  and  actual  strength.  In  the  absence 
of  exact  data,  but  using  the  best  information 
available,  it  is  stated  that  the  communicants 
of  the  Roman  Catholic  denomination  consti- 
tute about  eighty-five  per  cent  of  its  total 
adherents  as  represented  by  members  of  its 
communicant  families  and  the  attendants 
upon  its  services.  The  remaining  fifteen  per 
cent  is  made  up  of  unconfirmed  children  be- 
low ''the  age  of  nine  or  eleven  years."  The 
communicants  in  the  prominent  Protestant 
denominations,  on  the  contrary,  represent  a 
much  smaller  percentage  of  their  total  adher- 
ents. In  The  Religious  Forces  of  the  United 
States,  Dr.  Carroll  says : — 

The  Catholic  authorities  count  as  communicants 
all  who  have  been  confirmed  and  admitted  to  the 
Communion,  and  these  virtually  constitute  the 
Catholic  population,  less  all  baptized  persons  heloiv 
the  age  of  nine  or  eleven. 

It  has  been  estimated  from  carefully  consid- 
ered data  that  there  are  about  three  and  one- 
half  adherents  for  every  one  communicant 
member  of  the  prominent  Protestant  denomi- 
nations. To  arrive  at  an  approximately 
correct  idea  of  the  relative  strength  of  these 
different  denominations,  as  well  as  at  the 
united  Christian  sentiment  of  the  United 
173 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


States,  it  is  evident  that  the  adherents,  and 
not  the  communicants  only,  should  be  con- 
sidered. On  the  basis  of  adherents  (estimat- 
ing but  three  adherents  for  each  Protestant 
communicant)  it  is  believed  that  the  principal 
religious  Christian  families,  including  in  each 
all  related  branches,  in  the  United  States, 
show  with  approximate  and  safe  accuracy  as 
of  December  31,  1908,  the  relative  and  united 
strength  here  stated. 


Denominational  Families 

Divi- 
sions 

Communicants 

Adherents 

1  Methodists  

2  Baptists  

4  Presbyterians  

5  Disciples  of  Christ  

7  Congregationalists  

8  All  others  (having  less 

than  500,000  communi- 
cants each)   

Total  Protestants. . . 

9  Catholics 

(Roman  and  others)  

18 
14 
24 
12 
2 
2 

8 

6,838,779 
5,413,945 
2,082,766 
1,831,854 
1,295,423 
893,972 
721,553 

2,809,520 

20,500,000 
16,200,000 
6,200,000 
5,500,000 
3,900,000 
2,700,000 
2,200,000 

8,400,000 

21,887,812 
12,394,731 

65,600,000 
14,600,000 

Total  

34,282,5*3 

80,200,000 

It  is  estimated  that  the  total  population  of 
the  United  States  on  December  31,  1908,  was 
about  90,000,000. 

In  the  United  States  Census  for  1890  it  is 
174 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


stated  that,  of  the  total  population,  ' '  one  out 
of  every  twelve  is  an  active  or  passive  op- 
ponent of  religion :  two  out  of  three  are  not 
members  of  any  church." 

The  forms  of  denominational  organization 
in  use  in  the  United  States  proceed  upon 
different  theories  of  religious  life.  One  at- 
tempt briefly  to  describe  these  theories  classi- 
fies them  as  follows: — 

Democratic.  Each  separate  congregation 
controlling  its  own  affairs  and  owing  no  alle- 
giance to  any  central  authority.  Baptists, 
Congregationalists  and  Disciples  of  Christ 
are  included  in  this  class. 

Republican.  Here  there  is  a  central  au- 
thority with  defined  and  limited  powers  under 
a  representative  form  of  government.  Pres- 
byterians and  Lutherans  illustrate  this  class. 

Autocratic.  Where  the  authority  over 
matters  spiritual  vests  absolutely,  or  with 
unimpoitant  restriction,  in  the  ministry.  Ro- 
man Catholics  and,  less  exactly,  Protestant 
Episcopalians  and  Methodists  illustrate  this 
class. 

The  Standard  Manual  of  the  Baptist 
Churcles  puts  it  in  this  way: — 

There  are  three  "special"  and  widely  different 
forms  of  church  government  which  have  gained 
175 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


prevalence  in  Christian  communities  during  past 
ages,  and  which  are  still  maintained  with  varied 
success,  each  of  which  claims  to  have  been  the 
original  primitive  form: — 

(1)  The  Prelatical,  in  which  the  governing  power 
resides  in  prelates,  or  diocesan  bishops,  and  the 
higher  clergy ;  as  in  the  Roman,  Greek,  English  and 
most  Oriental  churches. 

(2)  The  Presbyterian,  in  which  the  governing 
power  resides  in  assemblies,  synods,  presbyteries 
and  sessions ;  as  in  the  Scottish  Kirk,  the  Lutheran 
and  in  the  various  Presbyterian  Churches.  [The 
Methodist  form  of  government  appears  to  have 
more  in  common  with  this  class  than  with  either  of 
the  others.] 

(3)  The  Independent,  in  which  the  body  is  self- 
governing,  each  single  and  local  church  administer- 
ing its  own  government  by  the  voice  of  the  major- 
ity of  its  members;  as  among  Baptists,  Congre- 
gationalists,  Independents,  and  some  other  bodies. 

Still  another  brief  classification  was  at- 
tempted in  a  communication  which  appeared 
in  The  Churchman  of  March  21,  1908,  and 
which  was  stated  as  follows : — 

Here  we  have  something  really  fundamental  and 
very  old.  It  brings  before  us  autocratic  in  contrast 
with  democratic  theories  of  government;  in  relig- 
ious as  in  secular  affairs.  These  two  theories  differ 
so  radically  as  to  permit  of  no  apparent  possibility 
of  any  useful  compromise.  They  represent,  on  the 
one  hand,  an  autocratic  purpose  of  those  in  power 
to  dominate  over  their  fellow-creatures,  keeping 
them  in  religious  subjection  and  contemplating  no 
176 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


(complete)  religious  development  of  the  individual 
nor  independent  thought  on  his  part;  and  on  the 
other  hand  a  democratic  purpose  to  resist  autocracy 
and  strive  to  develop  an  equality  between  individual 
men  by  giving  them  all,  so  far  as  may  be,  an  equal- 
ity of  opportunity,  and  by  stimulating  each  to  do 
his  best  under  the  theory  of  personal  intelligence 
and  responsibility. 

It  has  also  been  said  that  the  Protestant 
basis  of  membership  is  belief  and  conduct; 
the  Catholic,  belief  and  obedience. 

Briefly  then  the  forms  of  denominational 
organization  in  use  in  the  United  States 
proceed  upon  either  autocratic  or  demo- 
cratic theories  of  government;  and,  as  our 
national  secular  theories  are  democratic, 
it  is  natural  to  find  the  religious  organiza- 
tions in  our  country  the  strongest  that  hold 
to  democratic  theories. 

It  is  approximatively  correct  to  state  that 
authoritative  statistics,  hereinbefore  quoted, 
indicate  that  the  aggregate  adherents  of  the 
Protestant,  or  non-Romanist,  denominations 
are  about  eighty-two  per  cent  of  the  total 
adherents  in  the  United  States;  while  those 
of  the  Roman  and  like  Catholic  denomina- 
tion are  about  eighteen  per  cent  of  the  total. 
Protestantism  represents  democratic  theories 
of  government;  while  Roman  Catholicism 
12  177 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


represents  autocratic  theories.  Some  facts 
of  interest  illustrating  the  development  of 
these  theories  in  the  United  States  will  now 
be  given. 

PROTESTANTISM 
By  far  the  strongest  of  all  religious  fami- 
lies in  the  United  States,  regarding  the  num- 
ber of  its  adherents,  20,500,000,  and  their 
aggressive  quality,  is  the  Methodist  Epis- 
copal Church. 

METHODISTS 

There  are  eighteen  members  of  the  general 
Methodist  family.  It  is  worth  while  to  con- 
sider something  of  its  history  and  of  the 
organization  and  methods  under  which  its 
grand  results  have  been  achieved. 

History 

The  Doctrines  and  Discipline  of  the  Metho- 
dist Episcopal  Church,  1908,  is  the  authority 
for  substantially  all  the  facts  hereinafter 
stated  as  to  Methodism. 

John  and  Charles  Wesley,  of  Oxford  Uni- 
versity and  presbyters  of  the  Church  of  Eng- 
land, were,  in  1737,  to  use  their  own  language 
"thrust  out  to  raise  a  holy  people."  United 
Societies  were  formed  that  became  the  Wes- 
leyan  churches  of  Great  Britain.  In  1766  a 
178 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


United  Society  was  formed  in  New  York.  At 
the  close  of  the  Revolutionary^  "War,  there 
were  eighty  traveling  preachers  and  fifteen 
thousand  members  in  the  United  States. 
They  then  considered  themselves  "totally  dis- 
entangled both  from  the  State  and  the  Eng- 
lish hierarchy,  and  at  full  liberty  simply  to 
follow  the  Scriptures  and  the  Primitive 
Church,"  "and",  said  Wesley,  "we  judge  it 
best  that  they  should  stand  fast  in  that  lib- 
erty wherewith  God  has  so  strangely  made 
them  free." 

At  the  "Christmas  Conference,"  in  Balti- 
more, Maryland,  December  24,  1784,  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church  was  organized 
and  the  Articles  of  Religion  and  the  Sunday 
Service  prepared  by  Mr.  Wesley  were 
adopted.  Chief  stress  is  laid  upon  the  essen- 
tials of  religion  and  a  wide  difference  recog- 
nized in  ceremonies,  ministerial  orders  and 
government.  Members  have  a  freedom  of 
choice  among  the  various  modes  of  baptism; 
may  receive  the  Lord's  Supper  kneeling, 
standing  or  sitting;  and  are  invited  to  unite 
in  extemporary  prayer  in  ordinary  worship, 
but  not  where  a  special  liturgy  is  appointed. 
Much  of  the  liturgy,  used  is  stated  to  have 
been  sanctioned  by  the  Universal  Church 
from  most  ancient  times. 

179 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


Govermnent 

The  form  of  government  consists  of : — 

1  Members.  One  desiring  to  be  admitted  on 
probation  must  give  satisfactory  evidence  of 
an  earnest  desire  to  be  saved  from  sin  and 
enjoy  the  fellowship  of  God's  people.  The 
term  of  probation  in  some  societies  is  six 
months.  Those  admitted  to  full  membership 
must  have  been  made  acquainted  with  the 
doctrines,  rules  and  regulations  of  the  Church 
by  the  pastor  and  the  class  leaders,  must  have 
been  baptized  and  recommended  by  the  offi- 
cial board  or  the  leaders'  and  stewards'  meet- 
ing, with  the  approval  of  the  pastor,  after 
passing  a  satisfactory  examination.  The 
members  of  a  church  constitute  a  local  society 
(church  congregation),  one  or  more  being 
a  pastoral  charge. 

2  A  Quarterly  Conference  in  each  pastoral 
charge,  subject  to  the  General  Conference, 
is  composed  of  traveling  ministers,  local 
preachers,  exhorters,  stewards,  class  leaders 
and  others  actively  interested  in  the  church 
work.  It  hears  complaints,  tries  charges, 
takes  cognizance  of  local  preachers  and  ex- 
horters, elects  trustees  and  stewards,  over- 
sees Sunday  schools  and  other  church  organ- 
izations and  meets  financial  obligations. 

180 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


3  An  Annual  Conference  organized  by  the 
General  Conference  composed  of  traveling 
preachers  who  are  required  to  attend  its  ses- 
sion. It  hears  complaints ;  may  try,  reprove, 
suspend  or  expel  a  minister;  elects  and  or- 
dains elders  and  deacons;  appoints  working 
boards ;  meets  financial  obligations  devolving 
upon  it,  etc. 

4  A  General  Conference  composed  of  min- 
isterial and  lay  delegates. 

(a)  Ministerial  delegates  must  be  members 
of  an  annual  conference  which  elects  by  ballot 
one  or  more  elders  at  least  twenty-five  years 
of  age,  and  otherwise  eligible  under  the 
church  organization  to  act  as  ministerial 
delegates. 

(b)  Lay  delegates  are  chosen  by  a  lay  elec- 
toral conference  constituted  by  the  General 
Conference  within  each  annual  conference 
district.  The  lay  delegates  equal  in  number 
and  power  the  ministerial  delegates  from 
the  same  annual  conference.  Each  lay  dele- 
gate must  be  not  less  than  twenty-five  years 
of  age  and  five  years  a  member  of  the  Church. 

(c)  A  General  Conference  meets  every 
fourth  year.  It  elects  from  traveling  elders 
as  many  general  superintendents  (bishops) 
as  it  deems  necessary,  one  of  whom  presides 
in  General  Conference. 

181 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


(d)  The  General  Conference  is  the  govern- 
ing body  of  the  Church  and  has  full  power 
*'to  make  rules  and  regulations  for  the 
Church,"  subject  to  specified,  constitutional 
limitations. 

The  working  organization  consists  of : — 

1  Bishops  (general  superintendents)  who 
are  declared  not  to  be  a  higher  power  in  the 
Christian  ministry  above  elders  or  presby- 
ters, but  who  are  consecrated  for  the  special 
and  sacred  duties  of  the  superintendency  of 
the  Church.  They  are  constituted  bishops  by 
the  election  of  the  General  Conference  and  the 
laying  on  of  the  hands  of  three  bishops ;  or  at 
least  of  one  bishop  and  two  elders.  A  bishop 
presides  in  district  and  annual  conferences; 
forms  districts;  appoints  preachers  to  pas- 
toral charges ;  travels  through  the  connection 
at  large;  consecrates  other  bishops;  ordains 
elders  and  deacons;  and  has  general  over- 
sight of  the  spiritual  and  temporal  business 
of  the  Church,  being  answerable  for  conduct 
to  the  General  Conference.  The  bishops' 
duties  are  itinerant  and  general;  they  have 
no  settled  dioceses. 

2  Missionary  Bishops  are  elected  for  spe- 
cific foreign  missions  and  have  episcopal 
jurisdiction  therein,  amenable  to  the  General 
Conference. 

182 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


3  District  Superintendents  are  appointed 
by  the  bishops.  They  travel  throughout 
their  districts ;  have  charge  of  traveling  min- 
isters, local  preachers  and  exhorters;  and 
otherwise  assist  and  act  for  the  bishop. 

4  Ministers  are  received  into  full  member- 
ship, as  such,  after  the  equivalent  of  two 
years'  satisfactory  trial  as  preachers  under 
appointment  of  an  annual  or  mission  confer- 
ence. The  admission  of  a  preacher  into  full 
membership  at  a  conference  is  after  solemn 
fasting  and  prayer,  and  a  satisfactory  exam- 
ination in  a  prescribed  form.  Ministers  are 
assigned  to  pastoral  or  other  duty. 

5  Local  preachers  must  be  licensed  to 
preach  by  a  district  or  a  quarterly  confer- 
ence, after  a  satisfactoi*y  examination  and 
recommendation  by  the  society  or  by  the 
leaders  and  stewards'  meeting.  District 
superintendents  and  pastors  are  required  to 
give  local  preachers  regular  employment  on 
the  Sabbath  when  possible.  Local  preachers 
need  not  give  up  secular  business;  may  be 
ordained  deacon  or  elder;  may  be  appointed 
to  pastoral  charges. 

6  Elders  are  constituted  by  election  at  an 
annual  conference  and  by  the  laying  on  of 
hands  of  a  bishop  and  of  some  of  the  elders 

183 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


who  are  present.  They  preach,  conduct 
divine  worship,  solemnize  matrimony,  ad- 
minister baptism  and  the  Lord's  Supper  and 
perform  other  important  assigned  duties. 

7  Exhorters  must  be  properly  recom- 
mended and  licensed  by  the  pastor  to  hold 
meetings  for  prayer  and  exhortation. 

8  Deacons  are  constituted  by  election  at  an 
annual  conference  and  the  laying  on  of  hands 
of  a  bishop.  They  may  preach,  conduct 
divine  worship,  solemnize  matrimony,  admin- 
ister baptism,  assist  in  administering  the 
Lord's  Supper  and  perform  other  assigned 
duties. 

9  Stewards  are  nominated  by  the  pastor 
subject  to  confirmation  by  the  quarterly  con- 
ference. They  are  responsible  for  the  finan- 
cial and  temporal  affairs,  including  informing 
members  of  financial  conditions  and  needs 
and  urging  liberality  upon  such  members. 
They  look  after  ministerial  support  and  all 
other  necessary  outlay  in  connection  with 
the  church  work. 

10  Class  Leaders  are  appointed  by  the 
pastor  to  oversee  classes  of  twenty  or  more 
into  which  the  members  of  the  church  are 
divided.  They  arrange  meetings  for  wor- 
ship, instruction,  encouragement  and  admoni- 

184 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


tion,  and  aid  the  pastor  in  keeping  closely  in 
touch  with  the  spiritual  condition  of  his 
charge.  They  stimulate  interest  on  the  part 
of  individual  members  in  the  church  and  its 
work. 

11  Deaconesses  visit  the  sick,  pray  with 
the  dying,  comfort  the  sorrowing,  seek  the 
wandering,  save  the  sinning,  relieve  the  poor, 
care  for  the  orphans,  and  take  up  other 
Christlike  service. 

12  Institutions,  Boards,  Societies,  etc. 
There  is  a  Book  Concern  in  charge  of  the 
large  work  of  publication  and  distribution; 
there  are  boards  of  foreign  and  home  mis- 
sions. Church  extension,  city  evangelization, 
education,  Sunday  schools.  Conference  claim- 
ants, freedman's  aid,  denominational  funds 
and  temperance.  There  is  an  Epworth 
League  and  a  Methodist  brotherhood.  All 
the  foregoing  are  parts  of  the  general  or- 
ganization, and  are  busy  agencies  in  advanc- 
ing the  interests  of  the  Church  and  all  that 
it  stands  for. 

BAPTISTS 

The  fourteen  varieties  of  Baptist  churches 
with  their  estimated  1G,200,0()0  total  adher- 
ents stand  next  to  the  Methodists  in  order  of 
importance  in  the  United  States. 

185 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


The  Standard  Manual  for  Baptist  Churches 
is  the  authority  for  the  following  information 
in  reference  to  the  Baptist  history  and  gov- 
ernment in  this  country. 

History 

Roger  Williams,  born  in  Wales  in  1598  and 
educated  at  Oxford,  England,  came  to  this 
country  in  1630.  He  was  a  Puritan  minister 
in  Salem,  Massachusetts,  but  having  adopted 
the  Baptist  views  of  doctrine  and  church 
order,  was  driven  out  of  Massachusetts  by 
his  fellow  Puritans.  He  finally  reached  what 
is  now  Providence,  Rhode  Island,  and  there 
with  a  few  associates  of  like  faith  he  founded 
a  new  colony  which  he  called  "Providence." 

In  1639  he  received  baptism  from  one  of  his 
associates  and  in  turn  baptized  his  associates. 
A  church  was  then  organized  and  he  was 
chosen  pastor.  He  was  appointed  first  gov- 
ernor of  Rhode  Island,  which  was  the  first 
colony  to  give  entire  freedom  to  all  persons 
to  worship  God  according  to  their  own  choice 
without  dictation  or  interference  from  civil 
or  ecclesiastical  authorities.  The  present 
First  Church  in  Newport,  Rhode  Island,  was 
organized  in  1644,  and  the  First  Church  in 
Providence  about  the  same  date.    There  are 

186 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


said  to  have  been  only  one  hundred  and 
seventy-seven  Baptist  churches  in  this  coun- 
try in  1768.  Others  followed,  and  with  the 
increase  of  population  in  the  country  the 
churches  have  increased  throughout  a  wide 
area. 

The  Baptist  Year  Book,  for  1890  reports 
33,588  churches,  21,175  ministers  and  3,070,- 
047  members.  There  are  Baptists  other 
than  those,  called  the  regular  Baptist 
Brotherhood,  all  of  which  are  included  in  the 
statistics  that  embrace  church  families  of  like 
faith. 

Government 

Baptists  hold  that  every  separate  local 
church  should  govern  itself  according  to  the 
laws  of  Christ  as  found  in  the  New  Testa- 
ment. Each  church  is  independent  of  all 
other  churches,  of  all  other  persons  and,  so 
far  as  administration  is  concerned,  owing 
comity  and  fellowship  to  all  but  allegiance 
and  submission  to  none.  The  government  is 
administered  by  the  members,  no  one  posses- 
sing any  preeminence  of  authority,  a  majority 
deciding  in  all  matters  of  opinion. 

1  Members.  Candidates  become  members 
by  a  vote  of  the  Church  body  which  admits 
them  to  its  fellowship  on  their  receiving  bap- 
187 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


tism.  There  are  three  classes  of  candidates 
and  modes  of  receiving  them  into  member- 
ship : — 

(a)  By  baptism:  The  church  being  satis- 
fied with  the  religious  experience  and  Chris- 
tian deportment  of  a  candidate  votes  to  re- 
ceive him  on  his  being  baptized. 

(b)  By  letter:  The  church  being  satisfied 
with  his  recommendation  from  some  other 
Baptist  church,  votes  to  receive  him. 

(c)  The  church  being  satisfied  as  to  the 
Christian  character,  faith  and  practice  of  a 
baptized  person  without  church  membership, 
votes  to  receive  him  on  application. 

The  Church  Manual  states  that  membership 
once  acquired  may  terminate  in  either  of 
three  ways : — 

(a)  By  death. 

(b)  By  exclusion,  because  of  heretical  doc- 
trines or  life  inconsistent  with  Christian 
profession. 

(c)  By  dismission,  letters  of  dismission  to 
other  Baptist  churches  being  granted  on 
application  to  members  in  good  standing. 

Baptists  believe  that  governmental  power 
within  each  church  should  vest  in  a  majority 
of  the  members  of  such  church,  and  that  this 
power  cannot  be  transferred  or  alienated. 
188 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


A  church  may  send  messengers  to  a  confer- 
ence or  council  of  two  or  more  churches,  but 
they  cannot  be  delegates  in  the  ordinary  sense 
of  the  term.  No  church  can  empower  any 
man,  or  body  of  men,  to  do  anything  which 
will  impair  its  independency.  The  authority 
given  the  members  of  the  separate  churches 
is  claimed  to  be  in  accordance  with  the  apos- 
tolic practice.  The  acts  of  a  Baptist  church 
are  said  to  be  valid  and  binding  when  they 
accord  with  the  law  of  Christ;  when  they  do 
not  so  accord  they  are  null  and  void.  It  is 
a  part  of  the  duty  devolving  upon  members 
to  do  good  to  one  another  as  they  have 
opportunity. 

2  Pastors.  The  pastor  is  chosen  by  tlie 
church  body  to  which  he  is  to  minister.  He 
is  spoken  of  as  a  shepherd  or  overseer,  and 
it  is  his  duty  to  have  spiritual  oversight  of 
the  church  he  serves.  "While  Baptists  are 
expected  to  give  reverential  respect  to  the 
pastor  in  performance  of  his  duties,  they 
require  that  he  shall  rule  in  accordance  with 
the  law  of  Christ  and  that  when  he  does  so 
rule,  obedience  and.  submission  on  the  part 
of  members  are  imperative  duties.  The  gen- 
eral practice  is  to  choose  a  pastor  for  an 
indefinite  period,  although  some  churches 
189 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


choose  them  annually.  The  members  of  each 
church  are  very  careful  to  retain  in  their 
own  hands  the  full  control  of  the  pastor  and 
of  the  church.  The  pastor's  compensation  is 
fixed  by  the  church. 

3  Deacons  are  appointed  for  an  indefinite 
period  and  are  set  apart  to  their  ofl&ce  by 
prayer  and  the  laying  on  of  hands.  Follow- 
ing apostolic  practice,  deacons  are  ap- 
pointed by  the  church  "to  serve  tables," 
which  tables  are  described  as  follows: — 

(a)  The  table  of  the  poor. 

(b)  The  table  of  the  Lord. 

(c)  The  table  of  the  pastor. 

Deacons  are,  by  virtue  of  their  office,  the 
treasurers  of  the  church.  All  pecuniary 
transactions  are  made  through  them  and  they 
report  to  the  church  at  the  end  of  every  year 
all  their  receipts  and  expenditures.  It  is  a 
duty  of  a  deacon  to  visit  the  pious  poor  and 
to  sympathetically  distribute  the  charity  of 
the  church,  keeping  the  pastor  advised  in  all 
cases  that  appear  to  need  his  special  care. 

4  Other  Officers.  While  Baptists  believe 
that  pastors  and  deacons  are  the  only  scrip- 
tural church  officers,  they  consider  it  a  pru- 
dential arrangement  to  have  a  clerk  chosen  to 
keep  their  records;  also  to  have  trustees 

190 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


chosen  by  the  church  where  they  are  required 
by  iaw  to  be  the  legal  custodians  of  church 
property.  Trustees  have  nothing  to  do  with 
the  spiritual  affairs  of  the  church. 

5  Associations  and  Councils.  Separate 
churches  voluntarily  unite,  when  they  find  it 
convenient  to  do  so,  in  having  district  asso- 
ciations which,  whether  large  or  small,  are 
composed  of  messengers  from  the  churches. 
These  associations  are  very  valuable  in  con- 
nection with  local  church  extension,  mission- 
ary enterprise,  Bible,  book  and  tract 
distribution,  ministerial  education  and  Sun- 
day-school work.  Combined  action  for  these 
objects  is  recognized  as  more  effective  than 
isolated  action.  Such  associations  are  only 
advisory.  They  may  recommend  to  the  sep- 
arate churches  but  cannot  enact  or  execute 
any  decrees.  The  Church  Manual  says, 
"Baptists  must,  with  holy  jealousy  watch  and 
arrest  the  first  encroachments  of  associations 
on  the  independence  of  the  churches." 

Councils,  like  associations,  are  advisory 
bodies,  but  churches  are  cautioned  against 
the  danger  of  allowing  councils  to  assume 
any  authority  over  them.  They  are  often 
useful  to  advise  in  cases  of  differences  of 
opinion  and  as  to  questions  in  relation  to  the 
191 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


character  and  qualifications  of  candidates 
for  the  ministry,  but  the  ultimate  decision 
must  always  be  retained  by  the  separate 
church  bodies. 

LUTHEKANS 

The  Lutherans  are  third  in  order  of  im- 
portance among  the  Protestant  denomina- 
tions in  the  United  States,  having  twenty- 
four  divisions  or  members  and  an  estimated 
aggregate  of  6,200,000  adherents  in  the  entire 
family.  The  following  general  features  of 
their  history  and  government  are  taken  from 
publications  of  the  Lutheran  Publication 
Society. 

History 

The  earliest  Lutherans  in  America  came  to 
Manhattan  Island  from  Holland  in  1623. 
There  was  also  a  Swedish  settlement  below 
Philadelphia,  on  the  Delaware  River,  and 
they  built  in  1638  the  first  Lutheran  Church 
in  America  near  Lewes,  Delaware.  The 
Lutheran  Consistory  of  Amsterdam  sent  a 
Lutheran  pastor  to  New  York  in  1657  but 
he  was  sent  back  to  Holland.  Considerable 
bodies  of  Lutherans  came  to  this  country, 
settling  in  New  York  and  Pennsylvania  about 
1710,  and  in  Georgia  about  1734.  In  1748  the 
192 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


Synod  or  Ministerium  of  Pennsylvania  was 
organized,  being  the  first  Lutheran  synod  in 
this  country.  A  second  was  organized  in 
New  York  about  1786. 

The  Evangelical  Lutheran  Church  in  the 
United  States  of  America  claims  that  the 
Lutheran  Church  is  the  oldest  and  largest  of 
the  Protestant  churches,  having  in  all  the 
countries  of  the  world  a  membership  of  about 
seventy  millions,  or  nearly  one-half  of  Protes- 
tant Christendom.  It  is  further  claimed  to 
be  the  Church  that  has  direct  historic  con- 
nection with  the  time  of  the  apostles,  purified 
from  the  corruptions  of  Romanism ;  and  that 
all  other  Protestant  churches  had  their  be- 
ginnings after  the  Lutheran  Church,  and  are 
indebted  to  it  for  usage,  confessional  state- 
ment, or  liturgical  form.  It  permits  the 
adaptation  of  its  ecclesiastical  organization 
to  the  needs  of  time  and  place,  whether  epis- 
copal, presbyterial  or  congregational.  In 
this  country  it  is  largely  congregational,  with 
a  representative  system  of  government  and 
discipline  through  councils  and  synods  com- 
bining mandatory  and  advisory  powers.  It 
allows  similar  liberty  in  the  use  of  liturgical 
or  of  nonliturgical  forms  of  worship.  It  is 
an  active  missionary  Church. 
13  393 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


Government 

The  form  of  organization  and  government 
provides  as  to 

1  Members.  A  congregation  consists  of 
the  pastor  or  pastors  and  other  members  who 
have  been  baptized  and  admitted  to  the 
Lord's  Supper;  they  must  accept  and  con- 
form to  the  constitution  of  the  Church. 
Admission  to  membership  is  by  baptism  in 
the  case  of  unbaptized  adults ;  by  the  rite  of 
confirmation;  by  reinstatement  by  church 
council  on  recommendation  of  pastor  and 
committee  on  visitation ;  or  by  transfer  from 
some  other  Lutheran  church.  It  is  their  duty 
to  use  ordinances  of  public,  family  and  pri- 
vate devotion;  to  be  temperate;  to  love  and 
aid  each  other  and  to  be  in  all  things  con- 
formed to  the  mind  and  example  of  their 
most  blessed  Master  and  Sa\iour. 

2  Pastors.  Each  congregation  elects  its 
own  pastor,  who  must  have  been  licensed  and 
ordained  a  minister  as  provided  by  the  con- 
stitution of  the  Church.  Elections  are  by  a 
congregational  meeting  in  which  every  male 
member  of  the  congregation  not  under  church 
censure,  twenty-one  years  of  age  and  a  con- 
tributor to  the  support  of  the  church,  is 
entitled  to  vote.    The  pastor  is  the  oflScial 

194 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


head  of  the  congregation.  He  administers 
baptism  and  the  Lord's  Supper,  performs 
the  marriage  ceremony,  and  has  direction  and 
control  in  all  matters  connected  with  public 
worship  and  religious  instruction.  He  pre- 
sides at  all  meetings  of  the  congregation  and 
church  councils  and  keeps  all  church  records. 

3  Elders  and  Deacons.  Their  number  and 
terms  of  service  are  determined  and  they  are 
elected  by  the  members  of  the  church  as  their 
agents  to  perform  some  of  the  duties  orig- 
inally devolving  upon  such  members. 

(a)  Elders  are  to  aid  the  pastor  in  admin- 
istering the  government  and  discipline  of  the 
church,  preserving  peace  and  harmony, 
promoting  religious  education,  visiting  the 
sick  and  aiding  the  church  council. 

(b)  Deacons  look  after  the  financial  and 
temporal  affairs  of  the  church,  securing  the 
necessary  revenue  and  meeting  from  it  all 
necessary  expense.  They  assist  the  pastor 
in  the  administration  of  the  Eucharist,  and 
at  stated  worship  where  necessary.  They  aid 
in  the  performance  of  such  other  duties  as 
are  incumbent  upon  the  church  council. 

4  Trustees  may  .be  continued  in  office  and 
granted  privileges  by  such  congregations  as 
deem  it  expedient  to  have  them. 

195 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


5  Church  Council,  The  pastor  (who  is  the 
president  of  the  council)  or  pastors,  together 
with  all  its  elders  and  deacons,  constitute  a 
church  council  in  each  separate  church.  It 
superintends  temporal  affairs  and  is  de- 
scribed as  the  lowest  judicatory.  No  business 
connected  with  government  or  discipline  can 
be  transacted  in  the  absence  of  the  minister. 
The  council  elects  a  deputy  to  represent  the 
congregation  at  the  annual  synodical  meet- 
ing. It  admits  to  church  membership  under 
established  rules. 

6  Church  Schools.  Parochial  and  Sunday 
schools  are  conducted  to  bring  the  young 
under  proper  religious  influence  and  that 
they  may  "avoid  all  schools  under  Roman 
Catholic,  heretical  or  infidel  influence." 

7  Church  Societies.  There  are  various 
mission,  mite,  ladies'  aid,  young  people's  and 
other  societies  and  associations  working  to 
advance  the  cause  of  their  church,  under 
constitutions  of  their  own  but  subordinate 
to  the  constitution  and  regulation  of  the 
congregation.  Prayer  meetings  are  deemed 
to  be  of  the  utmost  importance  and  use- 
fulness. 

8  Synods.  A  district  synod  consists  of  all 
ministers  and  licensed  candidates  and  of  one 

196 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


lay  delegate  from  each  pastoral  charge  in  the 
district.  It  meets  at  least  once  in  each  year, 
and  has  general  authority  to  see  that  all  rules 
of  government  and  discipline  are  observed 
by  all  congregations  and  ministers  in  its 
district. 

9  Conferences.  Each  synod  may  divide 
itself  into  conference  districts  for  the  purpose 
of  holding  conference  meetings  for  mutual 
encouragement  and  advancing  the  interest  of 
religion  among  the  churches.  They  attend  to 
business  referred  by  a  synod  or  a  congre- 
gation. 

10  Ministerium.  The  ordained  ministers 
of  a  synod  compose  its  ministerium,  which 
has  charge  of  examining  candidates,  licensure 
and  ordination  of  ministers,  and  of  promis- 
cuous business  relating  to  the  ministry.  It 
cares  for  the  ceremony  of  installation  of 
pastors. 

11  General  Synod.  Under  the  constitution 
of  the  General  Synod,  adopted  at  Washing- 
ton, D.  C,  in  1869,  "The  General  Synod  of  the 
Evangelical  Lutheran  Church  in  the  United 
States  of  America"  consists  of  clerical  and 
lay  delegates  from  the  several  district  s}Tiods, 
their  number  being  equal  and  having  in  each 
case  an  established  ratio  to  the  number  of 

197 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


ministers  in  the  district.  The  General  Synod 
is  the  highest  ecclesiastical  council  of  the 
Evangelical  Lutheran  churches  connected 
with  it  through  their  district  synods,  and  it 
has  control  of  all  the  general  interests  of  the 
Church  as  particularly  set  forth  in  its 
constitution. 

It  is  stated  as  to  the  Lutheran  Judicatory 
that  *'the  Bible  is  their  judicial  code,  and 
their  decisions  are  valid  only  because  founded 
on  Scripture." 

PEESBYTEEIANS 

The  Presbyterian  family  with  twelve  divis- 
ions or  members  is  in  the  aggregate  fourth 
in  order  of  importance  among  the  Protestant 
denominations  in  the  United  States.  It  is 
estimated  that  they  have  in  all  about 
5,500,000  adherents.  A  useful  little  book  en- 
titled Ten-Minute  Supplemental  Lessons  in 
Church  History,  by  E.  Trumbull  Lee,  D.D., 
LL.D.,  published  by  the  Presbyterian  Board 
of  Publication,  is  the  authority  for  most  of 
what  follows  about  Presbyterian  history  and 
government. 

History 

One  of  the  first  of  the  pioneer  Presby- 
terians, the  Reverend  Richard  Denton,  settled 
198 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


in  Hempstead,  Long  Island,  where  lie 
preached  until  his  return  to  England  in  1659. 
In  1656  two  sons  of  Denton  and  their  associ- 
ates bought  a  tract  of  land  from  the  Indians 
and  founded  Jamaica,  where  they  established 
what  is  supposed  to  be  one  of  the  oldest 
Presbyterian  churches  in  this  country. 

The  Reverend  Francis  Makemie,  said  to 
have  had  a  special  talent  of  initiative  and  for 
administration,  came  to  this  country  from 
Ireland  in  1683,  and  organized  churches  at 
Rehoboth  and  Snow  Hill,  on  the  eastern  shore 
of  Maryland,  about  1684,  that  are  still  in 
existence. 

There  was  preaching  in  Philadelphia, 
Pennsylvania,  in  1698,  and  in  New  Castle, 
Delaware,  about  1702.  The  first  presbytery 
in  Philadelphia  was  organized  in  1706,  and 
divided  into  four  "subordinate  meetings"  or 
presbyteries  in  1716.  This  is  said  to  have 
been  the  beginning  of  the  first  S}Tiod,  and  it 
continued  without  constitution  or  subscrip- 
tion to  any  standard  of  doctri^je  till  1729, 
when  a  controversy  divided  the  Church  into 
Old  Side  and  New  Side  parties  that  continued 
until  1758,  when  the  two  parties  were  re- 
united. At  the  time  of  the  Revolutionary 
War  there  were  eleven  presbyteries  and  one 

199 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 

hundred  and  thirty- two  ministers.  Other  di- 
visions occurred  later,  some  of  which  (notably 
that  of  the  Old  School  and  New  School,  end- 
ing November  12,  1869),  have  ceased  to  exist 
with  the  changes  that  time  brings,  while 
others  still  continue.  The  Presbyterian 
churches  are  active,  aggressive  workers  and 
an  important,  respected  force  in  the  religious 
world. 

Government 

"The  authority  for  the  Presbyterian  form 
of  church  government  is  very  ancient,  reach- 
ing back  to  the  organization  of  the  Jewish 
commonwealth.  The  Presbyterian  form  of 
government  is  also  in  the  New  Testament 
and  therefore  is  apostolic."  It  claims  to  be 
a  form  of  church  government  of  the  people, 
by  the  people  (through  their  chosen  repre- 
sentatives) and  for  the  people. 

1  Members.  Anyone  desiring  to  become  a 
member  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  makes 
application  in  person  to  the  session.  He  is 
questioned  as  to  his  faith  but  is  not  required 
to  give  formal  assent  to  any  stated  creed. 
He  is  received  into  full  membership  by  a 
vote  of  the  session.  Letters  of  dismission 
axe  given,  good  for  one  year,  in  case  of 
change  of  residence.  Revenues  for  church 
200 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


support  are  secured  from  members  by  rent- 
ing to  them  pews  or  sittings,  or  by  voluntary 
subscriptions  or  pledges.  The  church  officers 
are  chosen  by  the  members  and  are  respon- 
sible to  them  for  their  official  acts. 

2  Pastors  are  chosen  by  the  members.  All 
ministers  are  said  to  be  "on  an  equal  footing 
in  position,  privilege  and  authority."  Pas- 
tors are  the  responsible  heads  of  the  spiritual 
affairs  of  the  churches  over  which  they  re- 
spectively preside.  The  pastor  is  the  moder- 
ator of  the  session.  He  is  responsible  for  the 
order  of  worship. 

3  Elders.  The  ruling  elders  are  chosen 
from  the  male  membership,  and  their  number 
and  term  of  office  are  fixed  by  the  members  of 
each  local  church.  They  are  usually  elected 
for  life  or  for  terms  of  three  years  or  more. 
They  assist  the  pastor  in  his  work  among 
the  people,  and  represent  the  local  church 
by  election  to  governing  bodies  of  the  Church 
as  provided  in  its  constitution. 

4  Deacons  are  elected  to  care  for  the  poor 
of  the  church,  for  which  a  fund  is  provided. 
They  may,  under  supervision  of  the  session, 
administer  the  offerings  taken  on  behalf  of 
the  boards  of  the  church  and  of  other  mis- 
sionary activities. 

201 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


5  Trustees  are  elected  in  conformity  with 
the  laws  of  the  state  in  which  the  church  is 
located,  in  order  to  hold  and  administer 
church  property  and,  when  so  ordered,  to  care 
for  the  financial  affairs  of  the  church. 

6  Boards.  Missionary  and  philanthropic 
work  is  carried  on  by  boards  elected  by  the 
General  Assembly.  Their  objects  include 
foreign  and  home  missions ;  church  erection ; 
college  and  education ;  freedmen ;  publication 
and  Sunday-school  work  and  ministerial  re- 
lief. The  expenses  of  the  boards  are  met  by 
contributions  from  the  churches.  They  re- 
port annually  to  the  General  Assembly. 
There  are  various  Christian  endeavor  and 
other  societies  and  associations  of  young  and 
old  engaged  in  an  active  effort  to  advance  the 
cause  they  support. 

There  are  four  governing  bodies  composed 
of  representatives  chosen  by  the  members : — 

1  The  Session  consists  of  the  pastor  and 
the  ruling  elders  chosen  by  the  members  of  a 
church  to  direct  its  affairs.  The  church  ses- 
sion is  charged  with  maintaining  spiritual 
government  and  looking  after  temporal 
affairs;  it  receives  members  into  the  church 
and  may  admonish,  rebuke,  suspend  or  ex- 
clude them  from  the  sacraments;  appoints 
202 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


delegates  to  the  presbytery  and  the  synod, 
and  through  the  presbytery  to  the  General 
Assembly.  It  determines  the  number  and 
dates  of  its  meetings  which  in  many  of  the 
churches  are  held  monthly. 

2  The  Presbytery  consists  of  all  the  minis- 
ters, not  less  than  five,  and  one  ruling  elder 
from  each  congregation  in  its  district. 
Among  the  duties  assigned  to  it  are  the  re- 
view of  the  acts  of  sessions  and  supervision 
over  the  churches.  It  installs  and  dismisses 
pastors ;  acts  on  complaints,  appeals  and  ref- 
erences from  churches  or  individuals;  exam- 
ines, licenses,  ordains  and  installs  ministers; 
interprets  questions  of  doctrine  and  of  dis- 
cipline. It  is  represented  in  the  synod  and 
in  the  General  Assembly  by  the  representa- 
tives from  its  membership. 

3  The  Synod  is  composed  of  commissioners 
chosen  by  the  presbyteries  within  prescribed 
boundaries  which  may  be  the  same  as  those 
of  the  state.  The  synod  reviews  the  acts  of 
presbyteries  and  is  the  final  court  of  appeal 
in  all  matters  so  provided  for  in  the  constitu- 
tion of  the  Church;  it  can  create,  divide  or 
unite  presbyteries  and  propose  matters  to 
the  General  Assembly.  It  is  not,  as  such, 
represented  in  the  General  Assembly. 

203 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


4  The  General  Assembly  meets  once  a  year. 
It  is  composed  of  commissioners  from  the 
presbyteries  and  is  the  highest  judicatory 
of  the  Church.  It  has  been  described  as 
"the  national  house  of  representatives  of  the 
Presbyterian  Church  in  the  United  States  of 
America."  It  consists  of  an  equal  represen- 
tation of  ministers  and  elders,  their  number 
being  determined  by  a  certain  relation  to  the 
total  number  of  ministers  in  the  presbytery 
they  represent. 

The  General  Assembly  receives  and  acts 
upon  all  overtures  from  the  presbyteries,  and 
enacts  into  law  any  measure  on  which  a 
majority  of  the  presbyteries  shall  have 
agreed.  It  reviews  the  records  of  the  synods 
and  is,  in  general,  the  highest  court  of  the 
Church. 

DISCIPLES  OF  CHRIST 

This  religious  body  is  of  comparatively 
recent  origin,  but  it  has  been  active  and 
aggressive  and  stands  fifth  in  the  list  of 
Protestant  Christians  with  its  3,900,000  ad- 
herents. The  Religious  Forces  of  the  United 
States  (Carroll),  The  Story  of  the  Churches 
— The  Disciples  of  Christ  (Gates),  The  Year 
Book  and  sundry  church  tracts,  have  been 
204 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


consulted  in  the  preparation  of  this  brief 
summary. 

History 

The  religious  body  now  known  as  Dis- 
ciples of  Christ"  originated  with  the  with- 
drawal in  1809  of  Thomas  Campbell,  a  South- 
em  Presbyterian  minister  dissatisfied  with 
his  Church,  from  the  Seceder  Presbyterian 
Church,  and  his  starting  a  new  Christian  or- 
ganization based  upon  faith  in  the  Bible 
alone.  His  Church  presbytery  had  voted  him 
deserving  of  censure,  and  the  synod  to  which 
he  appealed,  while  setting  aside  the  judgment 
of  the  presbytery,  decided  that  his  answers 
had  been  so  evasive  and  unsatisfactory  as  to 

infer  censure."  He  subsequently  presented 
to  the  synod  a  formal  renunciation  of  its 
authority.  By  fusion,  in  1827,  with  some  for- 
mer Baptists,  the  denomination  now  known 
as  "Disciples  of  Christ"  or  ''Christians"  re- 
sulted. They  believe  in  Jesus  Christ  as  the 
Son  of  God,  and  trust  in  him  as  their  Re- 
deemer, accepting  the  authority  of  Scripture 
as  a  principle  of  Christian  unity.  To  tliis 
has  been  added,  ''Unity  of  opinion  is  not 
essential  to  Christian  union."  One  of  their 
leaders  has  said,  "Let  the  bond  of  Union 
205 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


among  the  baptized  be  Christian  character 
in  place  of  orthodoxy — right  doing  in  place 
of  exact  thinking."  They  have  no  creed  to 
■which  assent  is  required  except  a  belief  in  the 
Bible.  Their  practice  has  been  partially 
stated  in  their  seemingly  simple  platform  of, 
' '  Where  the  Scriptures  speak,  we  speak ;  and 
where  they  are  silent,  we  are  silent. ' ' 

They  are  strongest  in  the  Central  West 
and  Southwest,  but  have  followers  in  all  parts 
of  the  United  S4;ates.  Their  history  has 
much  in  common  with  that  of  other  important 
religious  bodies  in  their  dissensions  and  com- 
promises leading  up  to  the  union  of  those  of 
substantially  like  beliefs.  Their  numerical 
growth  appears  to  have  been  largely  at  the 
expense  of  the  Baptists  and  Presbyterians. 
Owing  to  the  preponderating  influence  during 
many  years  of  the  Campbells,  father  and  son, 
they  have  been  known  as  ''Campbellites." 
One  of  their  ministers  recently  said  he  be- 
longed "to  that  brotherhood  of  people  styled 
'Disciples  of  Christ'  ";  and  that  "our 
churches  are  called  'Christian  Churches'  and 
still  in  other  parts  '  Church  of  Christ. '  These 
names  are  all  Scriptural  I  believe,  and  as 
we  have  never  adopted  any  name,  we  like  one 
as  well  as  either  of  the  other  two." 

206 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


Govermnent 

Their  form  of  government,  so  far  as  they 
have  any  common  one,  is  congregational. 
They  have  no  book  of  faith,  discipline  or 
church  government  except  the  Bible.  Their 
church  oflScers  are  elders  or  bishops,  who 
have  a  spiritual  oversight  of  the  congrega- 
tion ;  pastors  or  presbyters,  chosen  as  spirit- 
ual leaders  or  teachers;  deacons,  who  look 
after  secular  affairs ;  and  evangelists  or  itin- 
erant missionaries.  Their  pastors  or  minis- 
ters are  called  and  dismissed  by  the  inde- 
pendent congregations  and  are  not  addressed 
as  Reverend.  Where  required  by  law,  indi- 
vidual congregations  are  incorporated  and 
severally  elect  boards  of  trustees  to  look  after 
their  property  interests. 

There  are  voluntary  state  and  national  or- 
ganizations (including  one  of  women)  for 
home  and  foreign  missionary  work ;  for  pub- 
lication and  issue  of  periodicals,  Sunday- 
school  literature  and  all  forms  of  printed 
matter;  also  for  educational,  benevolent  and 
other  phases  of  Christian  activity.  These 
organizations  incliulo: — 

1  The  American  Christian  Missionary  So- 
ciety, which  was  organized  in  Cincinnati  in 
1849  and  is  incorporated  under  the  laws  of 
207 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


the  State  of  Ohio.  Its  purpose  is  to  preach 
the  gospel  in  the  United  States  and  other 
lands.  It  is  supported  by  voluntary  gifts 
under  an  annuity  fund  plan  and  from 
churches,  Bible  schools,  individuals  and 
other  sources.  It  also  has  a  ''Permanent 
Named  Memorial  Fund"  based  on  five-thou- 
sand-dollar gifts.  It  publishes  The  Ameri- 
can Home  Missionary.  Auxiliary  boards 
have  been  organized  under  its  charter  as 
bureaus,  as  follows : — 

(a)  The  Board  of  Church  Extension  was 
twenty  years  old  on  September  30,  1908.  Its 
work  is  to  aid  in  church  erection  and  exten- 
sion through  loans,  wliich  are  expected  to  be 
paid.  It  reports  a  loss  of  but  $563.00  out 
of  $1,484,459.24  handled. 

(b)  The  Board  of  Negro  Education  and 
Evangelization,  its  purpose  being  indicated 
in  its  title.    Its  support  is  voluntary. 

(c)  The  Board  of  Ministerial  Relief  was 
organized  by  the  National  Convention  at  Dal- 
las, Texas,  in  October,  1895,  and  was  incor- 
porated under  the  laws  of  the  State  of  In- 
diana in  April,  1897.  It  cares  for  aged 
and  disabled  ministers,  their  widows  and 
dependents. 

2  The    Foreign    Christian    Missionary  So- 
ciety was  organized  in  Louisville,  Kentucky, 
208 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


October  21,  1875,  and  is  incorporated  under 
the  laws  of  the  State  of  Ohio.  Its  mission 
is  to  ''make  disciples  of  all  nations  and  teach 
them  to  observe  all  things  whatsoever  Christ 
has  commanded."  It  publishes  The  Mission- 
ary Intelligencer.  The  Christian  Woman's 
Board  of  Missions,  organized  and  incorpor- 
ated under  the  laws  of  the  State  of  Indiana, 
is  an  active  missionary  body. 

3  The  National  Benevolent  Association  of 
the  Christian  Church  was  organized  in  St. 
Louis,  Missouri,  in  April,  1886,  to  enable  the 
members  of  the  churches  to  cooperate  in  the 
care  of  orphan  and  other  children  and  of 
aged,  indigent  members  of  the  Church.  It 
supports  many  homes  and  like  institutions. 

EPISCOPALIANS 

The  Protestant  Episcopal  Church  family 
with  its  two  members  and  2,700,000  adher- 
ents, stands  sixth  in  order  of  numerical  im- 
portance among  the  Protestant  Christian 
bodies  of  the  United  States.  The  facts  herein 
stated  have  been  taken  from  the  church 
canons  and  other  recognized  books  of  author- 
ity prepared  by  various  members  of  the 
ministry. 


14 


209 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


History 

In  the  record  of  the  early  history  of  the 
Protestant  Episcopal  Church,  mention  is 
made  of  the  fact  that  John  Cabot  carried 
an  English  Church  minister  with  him  when 
he  discovered  Labrador,  in  1497;  and  that 
his  son,  Sebastian  Cabot,  had  with  him  when 
he  came  west,  about  1553,  a  minister  who  read 
the  daily  services  of  that  Church.  In  1587 
an  infant  girl  is  said  to  have  been  baptized 
according  to  the  English  Church  service  at 
the  settlement  on  Roanoke  Island,  North 
Carolina;  and  a  minister  of  the  English 
Church  is  said  to  have  accompanied  Captain 
Frobisher  on  his  pioneer  voyage  about  1596. 
These  are  interesting  items  of  church  history. 
The  earliest  permanent  settlement  of  the 
English  Church  in  the  territorj^  that  now 
constitutes  the  United  States,  was  made  at 
Jamestown,  Virginia,  about  1607.  A  small 
log  church  was  erected  that  was  subsequently 
destroyed  by  fire.  It  was  replaced  in  1619. 
A  ruined  tower  still  stands  upon  this  church 
site.  It  is  in  this  church  that  the  historic 
Indian  princess,  Pocahontas,  is  said  to  have 
been  bajjtized  on  her  conversion  to  Chris- 
tianity. 

This  settlement  had  extended  as  far  as 
210 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


Eichmond,  on  the  James  Eiver,  by  about 
1624.  The  State  of  Virginia  was  the  early- 
home  of  the  English  settlers  and  of  their 
Church. 

Government 

What  is  here  said  about  the  Episcopalian 
form  of  church  government  has  special  refer- 
ence to  that  of  the  "Protestant  Episcopal 
Church  in  the  United  States  of  America." 

1  Members.  Early  baptism  and  the  relig- 
ious instruction  of  children  at  home  and  in 
church,  are  urged.  When  a  child  reaches 
years  of  discretion,  which  may  be  at  twelve 
or  upwards,  and  is  desirous  of  receiving  con- 
firmation, the  fact  is  made  known  to  the 
rector.  If  the  child  is  found,  in  the  judg- 
ment of  the  rector,  to  be  suitable  for  member- 
ship, he  or  she  joins  a  confirmation  class  and 
receives  the  necessary  instruction.  Children 
or  others  desiring  to  be  confirmed  but  who 
have  not  been  baptized  in  infancy,  must  first 
be  baptized  and  then  prepared  for  confirma- 
tion. The  rite  of  confirmation,  in  which 
promises  made  in  Baptism  are  ratified  and 
confirmed,  is  administered  by  the  bisliop, 
with  the  laying  on  of  hands.  Lay  members 
of  the  Episcopal  Church,  acting  through  rep- 
resentatives of  their  selection,  have  charge 
211 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 

of  the  temporal  affairs  of  the  church.  They 
have  no  immediate  direction  or  control  of  its 
spiritual  affairs.  Ministers  once  chosen  may 
not  be  removed  by  action  of  the  lay  members. 
Laymen  must  approve  candidates  before  they 
can  be  admitted  to  any  ministerial  order. 

2  Vestry.  The  temporal  affairs  of  a 
church,  including  the  raising  of  the  revenue 
to  carry  on  its  work  and  the  appropriation 
and  expenditure  of  such  revenue  to  meet  its 
necessary  expenses,  are  in  charge  of  a  vestry, 
usually  of  twelve  laymen,  chosen  by  a  parish 
meeting  of  the  church  congregation.  It  is  not 
necessary  to  have  been  confirmed  to  constitute 
eligibility  for  the  position  of  vestryman.  The 
rector  presides  at  the  meetings  of  the  vestry. 
From  their  number  the  vestry  chooses  one  to 
act  as  accounting  warden  or  treasurer. 
There  may  be  assistants  appointed.  The  rec- 
tor selects  one  member  of  the  vestry  to  act  as 
rector's  warden  to  advise  with  and  aid  the 
rector  when  called  upon.  The  work  of  the 
vestry  is  carried  on  through  appropriate  com- 
mittees. The  corporate  church  title  under 
which  its  property  is  held  is,  "The  Rector, 
Church  Wardens  and  Vestrymen  of  (name) 
Church  (location) 

Members  of  the  ministerial  order  are  re- 
212 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


quired  to  subscribe  to  the  declaration  con- 
tained in  Article  VIII  of  the  constitution 
which  reads : — 

I  do  believe  the  Holy  Scriptures  of  the  Old  and 

New  Testaments  to  be  the  Word  of  God,  and  to  con- 
tain all  things  necessary  to  salvation ;  and  I  do 
solemnly  engage  to  conform  to  the  doctrine,  discip- 
line, and  worship  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal 
Church  in  the  United  States  of  America. 

3  Postulants.  A  candidate  for  "Holy- 
Orders"  must  consult  his  pastor,  make  his 
desire  known  to  his  bishop  and  secure  from 
the  standing  committee  of  his  diocese  a 
reconmiendation  for  admission  as  a  candi- 
date. His  theological  studies  thereafter  and 
Ms  daily  life  are  under  supervision  of  his 
bishop,  to  whom  he  must  report  at  least  four 
times  in  each  year  in  person  or  by  letter. 
Three  years  after  his  admission  as  a  candi- 
date and  upon  satisfactorily  passing  his  ex- 
amination, he  may  be  eligible  for  the  oflfice 
of  deacon. 

4  Deacons.  No  one  may  be  ordered  deacon 
unless  at  least  twenty-one  years  of  age,  three 
years  a  candidate  and  recommended  to  the 
bishop  by  the  standing  committee.  The  or- 
dination as  deacon  is  then  the  care  of  the 
bishop.  Canonical  provision  is  made  for 
deaconesses  and  for  lay  readers. 

213 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


5  Priests.  When  a  deacon  desires  to  be 
ordered  priest,  the  bishop  (or  the  clerical 
members  of  the  standing  committee)  assigns 
examiners  as  to  his  qualifications.  He  must 
be  not  less  than  twenty-four  years  of  age, 
have  been  a  deacon  one  full  year  and  be  rec- 
ommended to  the  bishop  by  the  standing 
committee  after  examination.  He  must  have 
secured  an  appointment  to  serve  in  some 
parochial  cure  before  he  may  be  ordered 
priest.  It  is  the  custom  that  ordinations  shall 
be  held  on  Sunday  following  the  Ember  Week 
after  due  notice,  a  bishop  officiating.  The 
priest  chosen  as  rector  is  the  spiritual  head, 
subject  to  the  rubrics  of  the  Book  of  Common 
Prayer,  of  the  affairs  of  the  parish  to  which 
he  has  been  chosen  by  its  vestry  with  the 
approval  of  the  bishop.  He  may  have  one 
or  more  assistants.  The  open  offertory  at 
one  Communion  Sunday  in  each  month  and 
other  offerings  for  the  poor,  are  taken  by  the 
minister  and  applied  to  pious  and  charitable 
uses.  The  minister  keeps  all  statistical  rec- 
ords in  the  parish  register. 

6  Bishops.  Whenever  the  Church  in  any 
diocese  desires  the  ordination  and  consecra- 
tion of  a  bishop  elect,  if  the  election  shall 
have  taken  place  within  three  months  before 

214 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


a  meeting  of  the  General  Convention,  the 
standing  committee  of  the  said  diocese  bv  its 
president,  or  some  person  or  persons 
specially  appointed,  forwards  to  the  secretary 
of  the  House  of  Deputies  e\idence  of  the  elec- 
tion of  the  bishop  elect  by  the  convention  of 
the  diocese,  together  with  evidence  of  his  hav- 
ing been  duly  ordered  deacon  and  priest  and 
other  facts  respecting  his  qualifications.  If 
the  House  of  Deputies  consents  to  the  conse- 
cration of  the  bishop  elect,  notice  is  sent  to 
the  House  of  Bishops.  If  the  House  of 
Bishops  thereupon  consents,  the  presiding 
bishop  so  notifies  the  standing  committee  of 
the  interested  diocese,  and  takes  order  for 
the  consecration  of  the  bishop  by  three 
bishops  of  the  Church.  The  bishop  is  the 
spiritual  head  of  the  diocese  over  which  he 
presides. 

7  Diocesan  Convention.  Every  clergyman 
belonging  to  a  diocese  has  a  vote  in  the  dio- 
cesan convention.  Every  parish  sends  three 
lay  delegates  who  are  chosen  by  the  vestry 
and  whose  votes  count  as  one  in  the  conven- 
tion when  a  vote  is  taken  by  orders,  clerical 
and  lay.  The  convention  meets  annually  and 
is  presided  over  by  the  bishop.  It  is  the 
legislative  body  that  considers  and  takes 
215 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


action  upon  the  affairs  of  the  diocese.  The 
active  government  is  by  the  bishop  aided  by 
a  standing  committee  of  four  priests  and  four 
laymen,  elected  by  the  diocesan  convention. 
The  diocesan  convention  chooses  four  clerical 
and  four  lay  delegates  to  represent  it  in  the 
General  Convention. 

8  General  Convention.  The  General  Con- 
vention is  the  supreme  legislative  and  judicial 
authority  of  the  Church.  It  is  composed  of 
a  House  of  Bishops  and  a  House  of  Deputies, 
and  it  meets  once  in  three  years.  The  mem- 
bers of  the  House  of  Deputies  represent  the 
several  dioceses  and  are  in  the  ratio  of  four 
clerical  and  four  lay  delegates  from  each 
diocese. 

All  action  by  the  conventions  and  by  minis- 
terial or  other  representatives  must  be  sub- 
ject to  the  constitution  and  canons  of  the 
Protestant  Episcopal  Church  in  the  United 
States  of  America. 

The  constitution  and  canons  provide  fully 
for  many  contingencies  in  church  government 
that  are  not  touched  upon  in  this  mere  out- 
line. In  certain  matters  of  detail  there  is  a 
discretion  vesting  in  the  several  dioceses  that 
make  their  practice  differ  somewhat  each 
from  the  other.  There  is  also  provision  for 
216 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


boards,  societies  and  other  ordinary  machin- 
ery for  conducting  church  work. 

CON  GREGATION  AlilSTS 

The  Congregational  faith  is  represented  by 
2,200,000  adherents  in  the  United  States  and 
stands  seventh  in  numerical  strength  among 
the  Protestant  Christians.  Among  the  works 
consulted  in  preparing  the  condensed  state- 
ment of  Congregational  history  and  govern- 
ment that  follows,  were  The  Religious  Forces 
of  the  United  States  (Carroll) ;  Congregation- 
alists  (Prodden) ;  The  Council  Manual;  Pres- 
ent Day  Congregationalism  (Huntington) ; 
Congregational  Faith  and  Practice  (Ander- 
son) ;  Congregationalism,  What  is  it?  and 
Congregationalists  in  America  (Dunning). 

History 

Eepresentatives  of  this  faith  came  from 
Leyden,  Holland,  and  landed  at  Plymouth, 
Massachusetts,  from  the  "Mayflower,"  in 
1620.  It  developed  most  rapidly  in  New  Eng- 
land, spreading  more  slowly  over  other  parts 
of  the  country.  Its  growth  outside  of  New 
England  is  said  to  have  been  restricted  by 
the  operation  of  a  territorial  agreement 

217 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


known  as  the  "Plan  of  Union"  made  with  the 
Presb}i;enans  in  1801  and  which  continued 
until  1852.  Since  the  latter  date  Congrega- 
tionalism has  largely  increased  its  followers, 
particularly  in  the  Central  West  and  North- 
west. Congregationalists  had  much  in  com- 
mon with  Presbyterians,  both  agreeing  upon 
the  Westminister  Confession  as  a  standard; 
which  Confession  was  adopted  by  the  Con- 
gregational Synods  of  1648,  1680  and  1708, 
each  church  being  at  liberty  to  formulate  its 
own  articles  of  faith  but  being  in  substantial 
agreement.  Congregationalists  believe  in  the 
general  unity  of  the  Church  of  Christ  in  all 
the  world,  and  in  1871  a  National  Council 
held  in  Oberlin,  Ohio,  declared : — 

They  [the  Congregational  churches  1  agree  in  be- 
lief that  the  Holy  Scriptures  are  the  suflficient  and 
only  infallible  rule  of  faith  and  practice,  their 
interjDretation  thereof  being  in  substantial  accord- 
ance with  the  great  doctrines  of  the  Christian  faith, 
commonly  called  Evangelical,  held  in  our  churches 
from  the  early  times,  and  sufficiently  set  forth  by 
former  general  councils. 

The  National  Councils  of  1880-1883  pre- 
pared a  creed  which,  with  some  changes,  was 
authorized  by  the  National  Council  of  1895. 
It  appears  at  length  in  the  Council  Manual, 
and  is  known  as  the  "Creed  of  1883." 
218 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


Government 

What  is  known  as  the  Cambridge  platform 
of  the  seventeenth  century,  states  as  to  the 
Congregational  faith : — 

Although  churches  be  distinct  and  therefore  may 
not  be  confounded  with  one  another,  and  equal  and 
therefore  have  not  dominion  over  one  another,  yet 
all  churches  ought  to  preserve  church  commimion 
one  with  another,  because  they  are  all  united  unto 
Christ,  not  only  as  a  mystical,  but  as  a  political, 
head,  whence  is  derived  a  communion  suitable 
thereunto. 

The  polity  of  Congregationalism  requires 
"self-government  in  the  local  church,  and 
fellowship  between  all  churches  with  its  privi- 
leges and  obligations." 

1  Members.  Those  accepted  into  fellow- 
ship with  any  Congregational  church  body, 
whether  they  remain  laymen  or  become  pas- 
tors, are  all  on  an  equality.  They  are  the 
governing  church  body,  each  separate  church 
for  itself. 

2  Deacons  are  laymen  who  assist  in  the 
administration  of  the  sacraments  and  who  are 
in  charge  of  charitable  and  temporal  affairs. 

3  Elders.  Each  congregation  chooses  its 
own  elders  and  "calls"  one  of  them  to  be  its 
minister,  fixing  his  salary;  he  may  be  called 
elder,  bishop  or  presbyter ;  he  serves  the  con- 

219 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


gregation  as  its  spiritual  leader,  guide  and 
instructor,  and  is  subject  to  its  discipline  as 
every  other  member  is.  He  is  examined,  or- 
dained with  prayer  and  the  laying  on  of 
hands  and  installed  by  a  voluntary  council 
of  neighboring  churches  of  the  same  faith. 

There  are  also  councils,  societies,  etc., 
which  experience  has  found  to  be  "of  great 
use,  not  only  for  the  recognition  of  fellow- 
ship, but  also  for  the  consideration  of  matters 
of  common  duty  and  interest" : — 

1  Church  Society.  Most  churches  include 
members  and  supporters  in  a  working  society 
for  advancing  their  church  work. 

2  An  Ecclesiastical  Council  composed  of  a 
moderate  number  of  Congregational  churches 
each  usually  represented  by  its  pastor  and 
one  delegate  and  acting  by  a  majority  of  its 
members,  may  be  called  to  aid  in  organizing 
a  church;  to  ordain,  install  or  dismiss  a  pas- 
tor; or  to  advise  any  church.  The  council 
dissolves  on  completion  of  the  work  for  which 
it  was  called.  Its  work  is  advisory,  not 
mandatory. 

3  Associations  of  Churches  have  come  into 
practically  universal  and  permanent  use. 
They  are  voluntary  and  advisory,  possessing 
no   mandatory  power  over  the  separate 

220 


DEEDS— FAITH  IX  ACTION 


chnrches.  The  most  important  of  them  are 
the  following: — 

(a)  Local  Associations  or  Conferences  of 
twenty-five,  more  or  less,  neighboring 
churches,  of  which  ministers  may  or  may  not 
be  members  as  is  in  each  case  provided,  con- 
sider affairs  of  local  district  interest,  includ- 
ing charitable  work. 

(b)  State  Associations  composed  of  dele- 
gates from  the  churches,  including  ministers 
ex  oificio,  meet  annually  to  consider  matters 
of  general  interest,  including  the  assistance 
of  disabled  ministers,  missionary  and  other 
benevolent  work. 

(c)  The  National  Council  meets  once  in 
every  three  years.  It  was  organized  in  1871 
as  ''The  National  Council  of  the  Congrega- 
tional Churches  of  the  United  States."  It  is 
composed  of  delegates  from  the  local  associa- 
tions in  the  proportion  of  one  delegate  for 
each  ten  churches,  from  the  state  associations 
in  the  proportion  of  one  from  each  state  asso- 
ciation, and  one  for  each  ten  thousand  com- 
municants. There  is  a  substantially  equal 
number  of  ministers  and  laymen.  The  Na- 
tional Council  has  recommendatory  power 
onJy  and  exercises  great  influence,  but  it  is 
in  no  sense  a  judicial  tribunal.    There  have 

221 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


also  been  International  Congregational  Coun- 
cils held  (London,  1891,  and  United  States, 
1899),  the  opinions  of  which  were  respected 
and  useful, 

4  Missionary  Societies  are  named  below  in 
the  order  of  their  organization,  and  all  solicit 
contributions  for  their  support. 

(a)  The  American  Board  of  Commission- 
ers for  Foreign  Missions  (1810)  carries  on 
important  and  extensive  foreign  missionary- 
work  and  is  aided  by  women's  boards  of  mis- 
sions.   It  publishes  The  Missionary  Herald. 

(b)  The  Congregational  Education  Society 
(1816)  aids  students  preparing  for  the  minis- 
try, colleges  and  academies  on  home  mission- 
ary ground  and  common  and  secondary 
schools  among  the  Mormons  and  Spanish- 
Americans  in  Utah  and  New  Mexico. 

(c)  The  Congregational  Home  Missionary 
Society  (1826)  supports  general  missionaries 
and  missionary  pastors  in  a  wide  field  of 
useful  work.  States  supporting  their  own 
home  iliissionary  work  have  state  organiza- 
tions and  direction.  They  may  be  contribu- 
tors to  the  national  work. 

(d)  The  Congregational  Sunday-School 
and  Publishing  Society  (1832)  supports 
superintendents  and  missionaries  who  organ- 

222 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


ize  and  encourage  Sunday-school  work.  It 
publishes  The  Pilgrim  Sunday-School  Mis- 
sionary, and  conducts  two  profitable  business 
publishing  houses  for  the  issue  of  Congre- 
gational literature. 

(e)  The  iVinerican  Missionary  Association 
(18-16).  The  work  of  this  association  is  con- 
fined to  this  country  and  is  among  the  South- 
ern negroes,  the  Indians,  the  Chinese  and 
Eskimos,  and  the  white  population  of  the 
Southern  mountains.  It  conducts  theologi- 
cal, industrial  and  other  schools.  It  pub- 
lishes The  American  Missionary. 

(f)  The  Congregational  Church  Building 
Society  (1853)  aids  in  erection  of  churches 
and  parsonages.  It  publishes  The  Church 
Building  Quarterly  and  carries  on  an  exten- 
sive work. 

The  existence  of  these  many  useful  associa- 
tions is  evidence  that  Congregationalism  has 
not  hesitated  to  resort  to  a  general  united 
effort  to  accomplish  the  great  results  that 
may  not  be  attained  without  such  union  of 
eifort. 

CATHOLICISM 

The  Catholic  Church  with  its  eight  divis- 
ions and  14,600,000  adherents,  occupies  an 
unique  position  in  the  United  States.    It  is 

223 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 

the  only  Christian  denomination  representing 
autocratic  theories  of  religious  life.  The 
governing  law  of  the  Roman  Catholic  Church, 
which  is  by  far  the  most  important  of  the 
eight  divisions,  is  one  of  unquestioning  obedi- 
ence on  the  part  of  the  laity  to  the  commands 
of  the  Pope  and  his  ministry,  in  all  matters 
religious.  It  is  the  only  denomination  not 
distinctly  identified  with  this  country  in  its 
early  history  and  theory  of  government.  It 
is  the  only  religious  organization  in  this  coun- 
try having  its  controlling  central  government 
in  a  foreign  land.  Its  adherents  are  made 
up  to  an  important  extent  of  unskilled  labor- 
ers who  came  to  this  country  as  emigrants 
from  foreign  Catholic  countries,  and  of  their 
children  who  are  controlled  through  a  paroch- 
ial school  system  that  has  been  ably  devel- 
oped as  an  essential  part  of  the  Eoman  sys- 
tem. It  has  in  its  relation  to  these  people, 
rendered  invaluable  service  to  this  country 
and  to  the  cause  of  good  citizenship. 

History 

The  earliest  history  of  Roman  Catholic 
effort  in  America  will  be  found  in  the  records 
of  the  Canadian  French  settlements  in  the 
North  and  of  the  Spanish  settlements  in  the 
224 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 

South.  It  was  not  a  notable  religious  force 
in  the  early  colonial  days  of  our  own  country 
where  the  general  sentiment  toward  it  was 
one  of  pronounced  opposition.  Its  first  im- 
portant colonial  settlement  was  made  in 
Maryland  about  1634  when  the  town  of  St. 
Mary's  was  founded.  An  antagonism  soon 
developed  between  the  Catholic  and  Protest- 
ant settlers  that  increased  in  force  and  found 
expression  in  repressive  and  restrictive  legis- 
lative enactments  that  continued  in  force  for 
more  than  one  hundred  years.  The  Roman 
Catholics  are  now  most  numerous  in  New 
York,  Massachusetts  and  Pennsylvania  due 
to  the  character  of  their  population  and  the 
fact  that  they  have  been  and  still  are  the 
important  immigration  centers  in  this  coun- 
try. The  immigrants  are  largely  Roman 
Catholic  in  faith.  H.  K.  Carroll,  LL.D.,  else- 
where herein  referred  to,  writing  of  the 
Roman  Catholics,  says,  There  are  now  thir- 
teen provinces,  the  metropolitan  sees  being 
those  of  Baltimore,  Oregon,  St.  Louis,  New 
Orleans,  Cincinnati,  New  York,  San  Fran- 
cisco, Santa  Fe,  Philadelphia,  Milwaukee, 
Boston,  Chicago  and  St.  Paul.  Connected 
with  these  provinces  are  sixty-six  dioceses, 
five  vicariates  apostolic,  and  one  prefecture 
apostolic." 

15  225 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


Government 

The  Pope,  claiming  to  be  "  the  successor  of 
St.  Peter,  and  as  such  the  Vicar  of  Christ" 
is  the  head  of  the  Roman  Catholic  Church. 
The  Vatican  Council  has  declared  that  the 
Pope  is  infallible  '  *  when  he  speaks  '  ex  cathe- 
dra', i.e.,  when,  exercising  his  office  as  the 
pastor  and  teacher  of  all  [Roman  Catholic] 
Christians,  he,  in  virtue  of  his  Supreme  Apos- 
tolic authority,  defines  a  doctrine  concerning 
faith  and  morals,  to  be  held  by  the  whole 
[Roman  Catholic]  Church."  The  Pope  is 
the  supreme  judge  in  all  controversies  of 
faith,  and  he  may  exercise  his  authority  either 
immediately  or  through  the  sacred  congrega- 
tion (of  the  cardinals).  He  exercises  his 
papal  and  patriarchal  powers  without  having 
to  render  an  account  to  any  earthly  superior. 
His  election  is  in  the  hands  of  the  cardinals 
of  the  Church  gathered  in  conclave  for  the 
purpose.  Certain  Roman  Catholic  nations 
exercise  a  right  of  veto  as  to  candidates 
placed  in  nomination  for  the  papal  office.  It 
is  stated  that  the  Pope  is  and  always  has  been 
Bishop  of  Rome,  but  he  might  choose  another 
see,  or  might  govern  the  Church  without  hold- 
ing any  special  see  at  all.  He  is  not  obliged 
to  be  a  cardinal  and  may  be  a  layman,  either 
single  or  married. 

226 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


The  Cardinals  stand  next  to  the  Pope  in 
authority  and  importance.  By  a  constitu- 
tional decree  published  in  1586  ''it  was  or- 
dered that  the  number  of  cardinals  should 
never  exceed  seventy,  thus  composed:  six  of 
episcopal  rank,  holding  the  old  [Roman] 
suburban  sees  before  mentioned,  fifty  de- 
scribed as  priests,  holding  a  corresponding 
number  of  'titles'  or  parishes  in  Rome  and 
fourteen  described  as  deacons." 

There  are  therefore  cardinal-bishops,  car- 
dinal-priests, and  cardinal-deacons.  The  car- 
dinals are  appointed  by  the  Pope  and  are 
taken  from  all  the  Christian  nations  of  Eu- 
rope. They  are  not  chosen  on  the  basis  of 
any  popular  representation;  the  Italian  car- 
dinals have  always  so  preponderated  as  to 
make  the  government  of  this  world-wide 
church  practically  Italian.  The  cardinals 
take  an  active  part  in  the  government  of  the 
Roman  Catholic  Church,  the  Pope  seldom,  if 
ever,  taking  any  important  step  without  their 
counsel  and  concurrence.  The  cardinals  take 
precedence  of  bishops,  archbishops  and  even 
patriarchs  and  are  styled  Eminentissimi  and 
Reverendissimi.  They  have  their  own  arms 
on  their  seals  witli  the  red  hat  as  crest.  They 
in  conclave  elect  the  Pope,  subject  to  the  veto 
227 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


right  of  certain  Catholic  nations,  as  before 
stated.  Cardinals  are  required  to  visit  Rome 
within  stated  periods. 

The  Patriarch  is  the  highest  grade  in  the 
hierarchy  of  jurisdiction.  Immediately  next 
to  the  rank  of  patriarch  may  come  that  of 
primate;  metropolitans  or  archbishops  fol- 
low, and  under  each  metropolitan  are  his  suf- 
fragan bishops.  The  archbishop  does  not  of 
necessity  have  suffragans. 

A  Primate  or  Vicar  of  the  Holy  See  was 
formerly  an  important  official,  but  the  title 
is  practically  unused. 

An  Archbishop  (or  Metropolitan)  receives 
appeals  from  his  suffragans,  when  he  has 
such,  in  marriage  cases  and  (with  the  author- 
ity of  the  provincial  council)  may  visit  any 
suffragan's  diocese.  He  appoints  a  vicar 
capitular  on  the  decease  of  a  suffragan  bishop 
if  the  chapter  fails  to  appoint  one  within  eight 
days.  He  may  have  a  defined  supervision 
over  several  dioceses. 

Bishops.  The  bishop  is  a  member  of  a 
hierarchy  which  is  claimed  to  have  been  di- 
vinely constituted. 

The  Council  of  Trent  said,  "If  any  one 
deny  that  there  is  in  the  church  a  hierarchy 
instituted  by  divine  ordinance,  which  consists 
228 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


of  bishops,  presbyters  and  ministers;  or,  if 
any  one  affirm  that  bishops  are  not  superior 
to  presbyters,  or  that  they  have  not  the  power 
of  confirming  and  ordaining,  or  that  the 
power  which  they  have  is  common  to  presby- 
ters also — let  him  be  anathema  [accursed]." 

A  bishop  is,  according  to  this  Council  of 
Trent,  a  successor  of  the  apostles  and  can 
confirm,  ordain  and  consecrate  other  bishops. 
The  Pope,  so  far  as  order  goes,  is  simply  a 
bishop.  The  bishop  must  teach,  preach,  ap- 
point professors  and  watch  over  schools,  and 
books  treating  on  religious  subjects  may  not 
be  published  until  they  are  examined  by  or 
on  behalf  of  the  congregation  of  cardinals 
appointed  for  this  service  and  receive  their 
**nihil  obstat"  (i.e.,  nothing  stands  in  the 
way),  and  they  then  receive  from  the  bishop 
his  imprimatur  (i.e.,  let  it  be  printed).  A 
bishop  must  maintain  discipline  among  his 
clergy,  guard  the  morals  of  his  flock  and 
oversee  measures  for  divine  worship  and  ad- 
ministration of  the  Sacraments;  tliese  and  all 
the  other  duties  of  the  spiritual  head  of  a 
diocese  devolve  upon  its  bishop. 

No  one  is  and  no  one  ever  could  be  a  Roman 
Catholic  bishop  unless  chosen  or  nominated, 
or  either  expressly  or  tacitly  recognized  as 
229 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


such  by  the  Pope.  He  must  be  consecrated 
by  the  Pope  or  by  a  bishop  specially  commis- 
sioned by  the  Pope.  A  bishop  must  be  at 
least  thirty  years  of  age,  in  holy  orders,  of 
Catholic  parentage,  of  good  fame  and  able  to 
produce  satisfactory  testimony  to  his  learn- 
ing. When  he  is  elected  bishop,  application 
must  be  made  for  the  papal  confirmation, 
which  is  given  in  a  consistory  of  cardinals. 
The  consent  of  the  Pope  is  required  to  remove 
a  bishop  from  one  see  to  another,  and  also 
before  a  bishop  can  resign  his  ofl&ce.  There 
are  suffragan  or  auxiliary  bishops  with  re- 
stricted powers. 

A  Vicar-General,  when  appointed  by  a 
bishop,  has  much  of  the  power  formerly  exer- 
cised in  a  diocese  by  the  archdeacon,  which 
latter  office  is  now  practically  unused  in  the 
United  States.  A  bishop  is  not  obliged  to 
appoint  a  vicar-general  if  he  does  not  need 
assistance  in  the  performance  of  his  episco- 
pal duties.  He  may  appoint  two  or  more,  if 
needed,  and  may  assign  to  each  a  special 
jurisdiction  or  district.  A  vicar-general  must 
be  a  clerk,  may  not  be  a  layman,  but  need  not 
be  in  holy  orders.  He  ceases  to  hold  office 
when  his  commission  is  canceled  by  the 
bishop,  or  by  his  resignation  or  death,  oi 
when  his  bishop's  jurisdiction  ceases. 
230 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


Priests.  The  priest  is  the  second  in  rank 
among  the  holy  orders.  His  it  is  to  oifer, 
bless,  rule,  preach  and  baptize.  He  offers 
the  sacrifice  of  the  mass.  Standing  between 
God  and  his  fellow-men,  he  blesses  the  people 
in  God's  name.  He  rules,  instructs,  adminis- 
ters sacraments  and  looks  after  the  spiritual 
welfare  of  those  over  whom  he  is  placed. 
Those  ordained  to  the  priesthood  are  not 
necessarily  attached  to  any  particular  church 
or  parish.  They  may  be  appointed  to  par- 
ticular churches  by  their  bishop. 

Deacons.  The  deacon  is  the  highest  of  all 
those  whose  office  it  is  to  serve  the  priest  in 
the  administration  of  the  Sacraments,  and  he 
is  set  apart  for  his  work,  not  merely  by  the 
institution  of  the  Church,  but  by  the  Sacra- 
ment of  order  which  he  receives  after  inquiry 
and  satisfaction  as  to  his  fitness  tlirough  the 
laying  on  of  the  bishop's  hands.  He  is  the 
chief  minister  at  the  altar  and  is  ordained  to 
assist  the  priest  in  the  celebration  of  the 
Solemn  ^Nfass  and,  on  certain  conditions,  to 
preach  and  baptize.  He  is  forbidden  to  give 
communion  except  in  cases  of  necessity. 
With  the  permission  of  the  bishops  he  may 
preach  and  ])nptize.  .  The  number  of  cardinal- 
deacons  in  the  Roman  Church  was  increased 
231 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


in  the  eleventh  century  from  the  apostolic 
seven  to  fourteen. 

Such,  in  a  skeleton  outline,  is  the  general 
working  organization  of  the  Roman  Catholic 
Church.  It  has  many  congregations,  orders, 
councils  and  varieties  of  working  machinery 
too  numerous  to  even  refer  to  in  such  a  con- 
densed article  as  this. 

Full  information  in  relation  to  the  organ- 
ization and  work  of  this  important  church 
may  be  found  in  an  extremely  useful  book  en- 
titled the  Catholic  Dictionary  and  Encyclo- 
pedia of  Religious  Information,  to  which  and 
to  Creed  of  Catholics  (Rt.  Rev.  John  M'Gill, 
D.D.)  acknowledgment  is  here  due.  Similar 
information,  but  much  less  complete  and 
satisfactory,  is  contained  in  the  general  en- 
cyclopediae  and  other  like  books  of  reference. 

A  consideration  of  the  general  methods  of 
government  in  use  by  the  seven  great  Protes- 
tant Christian  denominations,  embracing 
more  than  fifty- seven  million  of  the  total 
sixty-five  million  six  hundred  thousand 
Protestant  adherents  in  the  United  States, 
reveals  some  extremely  interesting  facts. 

They  all  have  the  same  fundamental  faith ; 
they  have  all  learned  the  necessity  for  some 

232 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 

form  of  general  govermnental  organization 
because  of  the  advantage  that  attaches  to 
united  effort  under  a  central  authority,  advis- 
ory or  otherwise,  in  certain  classes  of  service 
in  the  Lord's  cause.  They  do  not  differ 
materially,  one  from  another,  in  the  general 
character  of,  and  duties  assigned  to,  their 
officials  and  governing  bodies,  although  they 
call  these  by  various  names  and  give  them 
differing  degrees  of  authority.  They  agree 
substantially  in  their  several  desires  to  find 
sanction  in  apostolic  custom  for  their  particu- 
lar names  and  forms.  In  fact,  a  patient, 
judicial  analysis  of  the  fundamental  faiths, 
aspirations  and  governmental  methods  of  the 
great  Protestant  bodies  will  reveal  so  much 
that  is  common  in  their  experiences  and  in 
the  results  they  have  led  to,  that  the  differ- 
ences in  details  between  them  seem  trivial 
indeed  when  compared  with  the  important 
matters  upon  which  they  are  in  practical  ac- 
cord. This  is  a  most  encouraging  conclus- 
ion to  arrive  at  when  considering  the 
possibility  of  Protestant  ''Christian  unity  in 
effort." 

In  religious  belief,  as  in  every  description 
of  human  achievement,  the  original  unit  is, 
always  has  been  and  always  must  be  the  in- 
233 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 

dividual.  Where  two  or  more  individuals 
entertain  a  common  faith  they  may  be  ex- 
pected to  form  a  congregation.  This,  then, 
becomes  the  unit  and  represents  a  distinct 
advance.  Eeligious  bodies  whose  theories  of 
worship  and  government  are  congregational 
and  otherwise  similar,  find  it  desirable,  if 
not  actually  necessary,  voluntarily  to  unite 
for  the  performance  of  certain  descriptions 
of  work  or  service  that  may  be  most  economi- 
cally or  efficiently  done  through  union  meth- 
ods. They  may  come  together  for  the  for- 
warding of  missionary  enterprise,  domestic 
or  foreign;  or  for  the  publication  and  dis- 
semination of  information  with  respect  to 
their  faith  or  government;  or  for  the  ex- 
change of  experiences  through  which  a  benefit 
results  to  all;  for  these  or  for  any  common 
end  sought  and  that  is  best  attained  through 
united  effort,  we  see  separate  congregations 
finding  means  to  come  together  voluntarily 
for  efficient,  cooperative  service.  The  separ- 
ate congregations  may  reserve,  each  for  it- 
self, their  own  forms  of  local  government  and 
these  forms  need  not  be  alike. 

Here,  then,  we  have  the  congregational  unit, 
and  several  of  these  units  finding  methods 
of  cooperating  each  with  others  when  and  to 
234 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


the  extent  that  such  cooperation  is  manifestly 
beneficial  to  all  concerned.  Congregations 
similarly  but  more  permanently  associated, 
in  a  single  religious  organization,  and  with 
less  power  reserved  by  the  several  churches, 
represent  what  we  may  call  a  unit  of  church 
association.  When  a  method  is  found  to  unite 
the  congregational  and  the  church  associa- 
tion units,  each  to  retain  its  individual,  local 
preferences  as  to  detail  in  forms  of  local 
government,  and  worship  but  cooperating 
upon  all  general  questions  where  such  co- 
operation is  clearly  for  the  interest  of  all 
concerned,  then,  and  perhaps  not  till  then, 
will  we  see  an  universal  "Christian  unity  in 
effort"  for  the  advancement  of  our  Saviour's 
kingdom  in  all  the  earth  and  for  the  individ- 
ual observance  by  all,  of  his  commands  to  love 
God  and  our  neighbor. 


DEEDS-FAITH  IN  ACTION 


r 

CHAPTER  XII 

ORGANIZED  METHODS 

The  ultimate  purpose  of  "Christian  unity 
in  effort"  must  be  to  Christianize  all  the 
people  of  the  world.  This  can  only  be  accom- 
plished by  a  unity  in  effort  on  the  part  of 
all  Christians  who  are  such  not  merely  in 
name  but  in  truth.  Each  individual  worker 
must  look  to  Christ  as  his  Leader  and  Ex- 
ample, seeking  to  do  Christ's  will  in  every 
act  of  his  life.  He  must  be  a  Christian  in 
thought,  word  and  deed  with  a  faith  as  im- 
movable as  the  Rock  of  Ages.  The  workers 
must  proceed  under  organized  methods,  the 
best  that  can  be  found  or  devised.  And 
where  should  such  methods  be  sought?  They 
will  certainly  be  found  where  men  have 
accomplished  the  greatest  results  through 
organization,  that  is  in  secular  and  not  in 
religious  life,  to  our  shame  be  it  said.  In 
secular  life  when  men  know  what  they  want, 
236 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


they  spare  no  effort  or  sacrifice  to  obtain  it. 
It  is  not  so  in  religious  life.  There,  the 
purpose  is  not  always  so  definitely  clear  and 
controlling  and  the  effort  therefore  is  too 
often  half-hearted  and  the  sacrifices  too  few 
and  unimportant.  It  would  be  well  to  ex- 
amine the  history  of  notably  successful  organ- 
ized effort  in  secular  life  and  see  what  it 
offers  worthy  of  religious  imitation. 

Organized  effort  is  the  instrumentality  by 
which  the  great  work  of  the  world  is  accom- 
plished. The  limit  of  accomplishment  is 
found  in  the  degree  of  perfection  of  the 
organization  methods.  We  no  longer  depend 
upon  the  individual,  working  alone,  for  any 
important  results  in  large  affairs.  Nor  is 
it  an  intelligent  use  to  make  of  men  to  work 
them  in  masses  as  mere  machines  under  direc- 
tion and  without  the  possibility  of  individual 
initiative.  In  this  way  it  is  only  the  animal 
in  man  that  is  at  work.  The  mass  represents 
mere  brute  force.  It  is  comparatively  easy 
to  outline  the  probable  development  of  human 
effort  from  the  time  man  appeared  upon  the 
earth.  First  there  was  the  effort  of  tlie 
unaided  individual  in  the  simple  labor  neces- 
sary to  protect  and  sustain  life.  Very  soon 
larger  tasks  presented  themselves  and  the  in- 
237 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


dividual  called  another  to  his  assistance,  a 
temporary  association  for  a  brief  period  and 
ending  when  its  purpose  was  accomplished. 

We  can  imagine  that  these  temporary  ex- 
periences of  association  developed  the  fact 
that  certain  men  were  best  fitted  for  certain 
kinds  of  effort,  and  such  men  must  have  nat- 
urally drifted  together  into  some  more  per- 
manent associated  relation,  as  by  so  doing 
they  would  secure  the  best  results  with  the 
least  effort.  In  modem  days  we  call  associa- 
tions of  this  sort  general  partnerships,  where 
men  and  women  unite  their  entire  means  and 
labor  under  agreed  conditions  for  a  common 
end.  As  people  multiplied  and  society  be- 
came more  complex,  the  knowledge  possessed 
by  individuals  of  each  other  became  less 
intimate,  and  there  developed  a  resulting 
unwillingness  on  the  part  of  individuals  to 
trust  and  risk  all  their  means  in  general 
partnership  effort,  and  so  limited  partner- 
ships or  associations  appeared  in  which  each 
individual  set  apart  and  named  the  amount 
he  was  willing  to  risk  in  a  specified  enterprise 
as  to  which  he  thereafter  assumed  no  further 
liability.  Special  partnerships,  so-called, 
were  for  the  same  general  purpose. 

Limited  liability  corporations  followed,  ex- 
238 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


isting  by  virtue  of  govemmental  legislative 
acts  knovrn  as  charters.  At  this  stage  we 
have  in  evidence  not  only  the  desire  to  limit 
the  liability  of  the  individual,  but  also  to 
aggregate  larger  masses  of  capital  than 
single  individuals  or  small  groups  of  indi\dd- 
uals  could  pro\ade.  There  was  also  at  times 
a  desire  to  secure  necessary  powers,  such 
as  that  of  eminent  domain,  for  example,  that 
only  the  state  could  grant. 

"When  the  small  corporations  were  found 
unequal  to  the  world's  work,  they  were  ex- 
panded; new  forms  of  so-called  securities 
were  invented  to  attract  the  increased  capital 
needed.  As  corporations  multiplied  and  the 
competition  which  is  unintelligent  commercial 
war  appeared,  it  soon  came  about  that  com- 
peting corporations  harmonized  their  differ- 
ences through  process  of  absorption  and  a 
single,  larger  corporation  replaced  two  or 
more  smaller  ones,  incidentally  controlling 
competition. 

Then  came  the  aggregation  of  corporations 
through  various  methods,  into  what  we  now 
know  as  trusts.  Perhaps  the  modern  form  of 
so-called  trust  that  represents  the  highest 
order  of  intelligent  selfishness  and  efficiency 
to  this  date,  is  that  creating  a  community 
239 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 

of  interest  between  many  separate  corpora- 
tions, each  maintaining  its  own  organization, 
operating  forces  and  methods  adapted  to  its 
particular  service,  but  all  subordinate  to  a 
central  "holding  company"  owning  or  con- 
trolling the  capital  stock  of  all  the  separate 
corporations  and  therefore  in  position  intelli- 
gently to  guide  them  and  when  necessary  to 
direct  their  policy  and  operations.  The 
"holding-company"  method,  with  its  central- 
ized authority,  when  the  holding-company  is 
intelligently  and  honestly  managed  and  care- 
fully guards  individual  initiative,  certainly 
represents  a  great  advance  over  the  mam- 
moth corporation  that  grows  by  swallowing 
smaller  ones,  and  that  causes  each  thus  ab- 
sorbed to  lose  its  individuality  of  purpose 
and  method  of  accomplishment  in  the  great 
mass  to  which  uniformity  in  all  things  is 
made  the  one  governing  principle. 

This  mere  outline  of  the  development  of 
organized  effort  in  secular  affairs  presents 
incidentally  the  interesting  fact  that  every 
form  of  effort  Imown  to  man  from  the  origin 
of  the  race  is  in  the  service  of  man  to-day, 
somewhere  on  the  face  of  the  earth.  The 
solitary  hunter,  trapper  or  fisherman,  pur- 
sues his  lonely  way  as  his  earliest  progenitor 
240 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


did.  There  is  still  mucli  work  to  be  done  in 
the  world  by  the  individual  having  one  or 
more  temporary  or  permanent  associates; 
and  as  we  follow  step  by  step  the  develop 
ment  of  organized  effort,  illustrated  in  the 
life  of  to-day,  we  reach  the  climax  thus  far 
known  to  us  of  the  great  holding  trust  grap- 
pling through  its  centralized  authority  and 
its  subsidiary  members  with  the  greatest  com- 
mercial problems  known  to  man  and,  if  hon- 
estly and  intelligently  directed,  sure  to  solve 
them ! 

It  is  safe  to  say  that  the  highest  develop- 
ment of  organized  effort  has  always  found 
and  still  finds  its  most  forceful  incentive  in 
human  selfishness  and  in  the  demands  of 
competitive  conditions  that  must  be  met  in 
order  to  secure  the  end  sought.  The  in- 
genuity and  labor  of  man  respond  exhaust- 
ively to  the  promise  of  material  benefit. 

While  this  marvelous  development  has  been 
progressing  in  all  parts  of  the  world  in  every 
line  of  human  effort  that  promised  earth's 
rewards,  what  has  been  accomplished  by  those 
looked  to  by  the  world  as  its  religious 
leaders?  What  have  they  been  doing?  How 
do  their  methods  and  results  compare  with 
those  of  tlicir  more  worldly-minded  brethren? 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 

And  why  should  they  not  compare  favorably? 
Why  should  not  the  religious  leaders  profit  by 
the  examples  and  surpass  the  achievements 
of  the  secular  leaders  in  the  world's  affairs? 

Scanning  the  field  of  religious  effort  we  find 
the  elementary  conditions  and  consequences 
to  be  similar  in  the  religious  and  in  the  secu- 
lar fields.  The  earliest  action  in  each  case 
represented  an  individual  desire  and  an  in- 
dividual effort.  Then  came  greater  needs 
and  resulting  associated  effort.  To  the  social 
growth  and  its  complex  environment,  we  find 
the  secular  organized  effort  has  accommo- 
dated itself  far  more  promptly  and  efficiently 
than  has  the  religious  effort.  Should  this 
be  so? 

The  fixity  of  religious  faith  appears  to  have 
operated  to  unduly  delay  the  early  conform- 
ing of  religious  methods  to  changing  condi- 
tions, until  we  find  particular  forms  of  gov- 
ernment reverently  adhered  to  on  account  of 
their  supposed  age  rather  than  on  account 
of  their  recognized  adaptability  to  the  exist- 
ing conditions  and  demands  of  daily  life. 
As  would  be  naturally  supposed,  therefore, 
the  results  accomplished  by  organized  relig- 
ious effort  do  not  pretend  to  keep  pace  with 
those  found  in  any  branch  of  highly  success- 
242 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


ful  secular  activity.  Should  this  be  so?  If 
our  religious  leaders  and  their  followers  are 
sincere  in  their  faith  and  purpose,  their  ac- 
complishment should  be  relatively  far  greater 
instead  of  far  less  than  is  found  in  secular 
occupations. 

The  stimulation  to  the  highest  effort  in 
secular  life  is  found  in  the  value  of  the  re- 
ward that  follows  success  whether  it  be  posi- 
tion, honor  or  mere  money.  There  must  first 
be  something  men  have  an  overpowering 
desire  to  possess,  and  then  no  labor  or  sacri- 
fice is  too  great  for  them  to  offer  freely.  If 
preachers  and  people  can  be  made  really  to 
believe  with  their  whole  hearts  and  souls  in 
the  value  of  the  rewards  promised  by  the 
Christian  religion  to  those  who  become  its 
true  and  aggressive  followers  in  their  daily 
lives,  then  they  will  be  able  to  convince  others 
that  these  rewards  so  immeasurably  surpass 
in  lasting  value  all  the  position,  honor  or 
money  rewards  of  secular  effort  as  to  be 
worthy  of  all  humanity  can  do  or  suffer  to 
attain  them. 

Turn  again  to  the  field  of  successful  secular 
effort  and  strive  for  a  moment  to  learn 
whether  any  organized  methods  are  in  use 
there  that  may  be  advantageously  adapted  to 
243 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


advance  the  cause  of  "Christian  unity  in 
effort."  What  are  the  conditions  found  in 
the  religious  world?  We  have  many  Chris- 
tian religious  societies,  incorporated  and  un- 
incorporated, each  professing  the  same  fun- 
damental faith  and  purpose  but  occupying 
about  the  same  competitive  relation  toward 
each  other  that  is  found  in  the  least  intelli- 
gent forms  of  competition  prevailing  among 
secular  corporations  which  labor  for  a  com- 
mon end  but  without  unity  or  cooperation. 

How  does  experience  show  that  the  secular 
corporations  deal  with  these  conditions  when 
the  time  is  ripe?  They  eliminate  wasteful 
and  unintelligent  competition  and  plan  to 
unite  the  effort  theretofore  unprofitably  spent 
in  laboring  harmoniously  to  perfect  economy 
and  efficiency  in  operation,  thus  securing  re- 
sults not  otherwise  obtainable.  It  has  been 
hereinbefore  said  that  the  ''holding  com- 
pany" is  the  latest  development  of  this  secu- 
lar unity  of  purpose  and  represents,  at  its 
possible  best,  the  highest  degree  of  efficiency 
thus  far  attained.  Can  this  method  be  ap- 
plied in  religious  effort?  Some  of  the  diffi- 
culties found  in  the  secular  field  will  also  be 
found  to  exist  in  the  religious  field.  There 
will  be  found  an  individual  disinclination  to 
244 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


substitute  nevr  and  untried  methods  for  old, 
familiar  ones,  though  the  latter  are  known 
to  be  out  of  date  and  ineflBcient.  A  like  fear 
will  exist  that  in  the  resulting  changes  indi- 
viduals may  lose  their  positions  or  powers, 
often  held  to  the  manifest  disadvantage  of  the 
cause  they  are  supposed  to  serve.  We  will 
find  on  all  sides  the  human  limitations  which 
make  it  impossible  to  attain  perfection  and 
so  call  for  constant  changes  as  errors  or 
faults  are  discovered,  demanding  patient 
perseverance  so  rare  as  to  be  hardh'  human. 

We  will  hear  the  old,  old  saying,  "It  is  all 
right  in  theory,  but  will  never  do  in  practice," 
from  those  who  forget,  and  particularly  so 
when  dealing  with  matters  religious,  that 
what  is  right  in  theory  must  be  right  in  prac- 
tice and  must  be  made  to  work  out  the  end 
sought. 

With  all  this  in  mind,  it  is  here  seriously 
suggested  that  "Christian  unity  in  effort" 
may  make  a  useful  advance  toward  its  accom- 
plishment through  a  method  simihir  to  that 
of  the  secular  "holding  company"  which  re- 
sembles in  a  marked  way  the  original  theory 
of  government  under  which  the  United  States 
of  America  came  into  existence.  The  "Chris- 
tian holding  company"  would  become  the  dis- 
245 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


interested,  supreme  and  judicial  central  au- 
thority, advisory  or  otherwise,  of  united 
Christendom.  It  should  be  governed  by  the 
fundamental  creed  of  a  faith  in  God  and  the 
Bible.  The  separate  churches  (corporations) 
should  be  encouraged  to  put  forth  their  best 
effort  in  the  locality  and  way  they  can  each 
work  to  the  best  advantage.  All  questions 
and  differences,  should  any  arise  between  the 
members,  should  be  settled  by  the  central 
authority,  which  should  also  be  empowered 
to  determine  in  the  various  mission  fields, 
domestic  and  foreign,  which  form  of  relig- 
ious effort  is  best  adapted  to  each  locality 
and  to  the  conditions  found  there. 

In  secular  experience  it  has  been  found 
advisable  to  introduce  to  a  limited  extent 
cooperative  methods  of  distribution  among 
its  working  forces  so  that  each  head  of  a 
department,  for  example,  shall  be  interested 
in  the  money  results,  not  alone  of  his  own 
department  but  of  the  entire  corporation  of 
which  his  department  is  but  one  of  the  units. 
In  this  way  the  separate  heads  are  induced  to 
labor,  not  selfishly  for  their  own  individual  or 
department  benefit  but  on  the  broader  lines 
of  recognition  that  the  greatest  benefit  for 
all  often  demands  and  must  have  sacrifices 
246 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


on  the  part  of  the  individual  in  his  limited 
field. 

A  similar  problem  will  have  to  be  success- 
fully dealt  vnth  before  any  great  progress 
can  be  assured  in  commanding  the  religious 
results  that  are  certainly  attainable  by  a  true 
"Christian  unity  in  effort."  Churches, 
priests  and  people  must  learn  to  see  more 
clearly  that  the  real  problem  of  religious  life 
is  how  to  make  true  Christians  in  thought, 
word  and  deed  and  not  mere  narrow  followers 
of  the  peculiarities  of  some  particular  sect  or 
denomination  wedded  to  its  petty  theories 
and  preferences  rather  than  to  the  law  of 
Christ.  Christians  are  more  than  Romanists, 
Anglicans  or  other  Protestants  of  whatever 
may  be  their  particular  schools  of  thought. 
When  we  all  are  ready  to  organize  our  great, 
unselfish  central  "Christian  holding  com- 
pany," and  to  sacrifice  everything  not  funda- 
mental in  the  desire  so  to  advance  the  Chris- 
tian standard,  then  may  we  reasonably  hope 
the  Lord  will  lend  his  support  to  our  other- 
wise feeble  efforts  and  place  the  world  at  the 
feet  of  those  who  unselfishly  labor  for  his 
honor  and  glory. 

An  attempt  has  been  made  to  state  a  simple 
and  fundamental  faith  essential  to  "Christian 
247 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


unity  in  effort,"  and  to  suggest  that  an  or- 
ganized method  should  be  possible  under 
which  such  unity  might  be  attempted.  It 
remains  to  consider  some  of  the  difficulties 
that  must  be  overcome.  One  great  difficulty, 
of  course,  will  be  to  induce  a  surrender  on 
the  part  of  the  various  denominations  of  the 
human  inclination  found  in  them  all  to  adhere 
tenaciously  to  the  methods  they  prefer  and 
believe  to  be  right,  although  nonessential, 
even  at  the  risk  of  forming  unconsciously  the 
habit  of  thanking  God  they  are  not  as  other 
men  are,  instead  of  devoting  themselves  to 
the  development  of  the  mental  attitude  which 
met  the  approval  of  our  Saviour  and  found 
expression  in  the  memorable  prayer,  "God 
be  merciful  to  me  a  sinner." 

It  is  unfortunate  that  those  honestly  desir- 
ing and  striving  for  Christian  unity  appear 
to  find  it  necessary  to  couple  with  an  expres- 
sion of  this  laudable  desire  some  denomina- 
tional ultimatum  as  to  the  basis  upon  which 
unity  must  proceed.  One  of  the  most  notable 
of  these  ultimatums,  and  one  often  referred 
to,  is  expressed  in  the  so-called  "Chicago- 
Lambeth  Articles"  issued  by  the  "Confer- 
ence of  Bishops  of  the  Anglican  Communion, 
holden  at  Lambeth  Palace  [London]  in  July 
248 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


1888."  The  action  of  this  conference  was 
wholly  that  of  the  English  Church,  although 
a  number  of  bishops  of  the  Protestant  Epis- 
copal Church  in  the  United  States  of  America 
were  present  in  their  private  capacity,  not  in 
any  way  by  authority  of  the  Church  with 
which  they  were  officially  connected. 

The  articles  adopted  by  the  English  bishops 
as  fundamental  and  essential  were: — 

(A)  The  Holy  Scriptures  of  the  Old  and  New 
Testaments,  as  "containing  all  things  necessary  to 
salvation,"  and  as  being  the  rule  and  ultimate 
standard  of  faith. 

(B)  The  Apostles'  Creed,  as  the  Baptismal  Sym- 
bol; and  the  Nicene  Creed,  as  the  sufficient  state- 
ment of  the  Christian  faith. 

(C)  The  two  sacraments  ordained  by  Christ 
Himself — Baptism  and  the  Supper  of  the  Lord — 
ministered  with  unfailing  use  of  Christ's  words  of 
Institution,  and  of  the  elements  ordained  by  Him. 

(D)  The  Historic  Episcopate,  locally  adapted  in 
the  methods  of  its  administration  to  the  varying 
needs  of  the  nations  and  peoples  called  of  God  into 
the  Unity  of  His  Church. 

Mr.  Pepper,  in  his  address  elsewhere  herein 
referred  to,  said: — 

The  Lambeth-Chicago  Quadrilateral  was  well 
enough,  but,  as  Dr.  Smyth  points  out,  it  has  been 
followed  by  no  ovidoncc  of  intention  on  our  [Prot- 
estant Episcopal  1  part  to  make  the  declaration 
effective. 

249 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


"Were  these  Lambeth  Articles  "well 
enough"?  Was  it  not  rather  because  of 
their  failure  to  be  ''well  enough,"  and  be- 
cause they  were  offered  as  an  ultimatum  to 
those  who  had  not  sought  and  did  not  want 
them,  that  they  were  not  and  should  not  have 
been  expected  to  become,  effective?  The 
House  of  Bishops  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal 
Church,  when  it  proposed  the  ''Quadrilat- 
eral Basis"  at  Chicago  in  1886,  stated: — 

We  hereby  declare  our  desire  and  readiness,  so 
soon  as  there  shall  be  any  authorized  response  to 
this  declaration,  to  enter  into  brotherly  conference 
with  all  or  any  Christian  bodies  seeking  the  restora- 
tion of  the  organic  unity  of  the  Church,  with  a 
view  to  the  earnest  study  of  the  conditions  under 
which  so  priceless  a  blessing  might  happily  be 
brought  to  pass. 

The  General  Convention  of  the  Disciples 
of  Christ  in  session  at  Indianapolis  in  1887, 
in  response  to  this  invitation,  appointed  a 
committee  of  its  number  to  confer  with  a  like 
committee  of  the  Episcopalians.  Each  com- 
mittee appears  to  have  presented  a  statement 
of  its  own  beliefs  and  methods  as  practically 
its  ultimatum.  As  a  matter  of  course  noth- 
ing was  accomplished  in  the  way  of  Christian 
unity.  It  is  not  probable  that  there  will  be 
any  Christian  unity  if  it  demands  the  adop- 
250 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


tion  of  the  beliefs  and  metliods,  right  or 
wrong,  of  any  one  denomination  by  all  of  the 
others,  with  the  abandonment,of  their  own. 

Compare  the  Chicago-Lambeth  ultimatum 
with  the  simple  theory  of  the  great  Protestant 
Episcopal  missionary.  Bishop  Brent,  who 
said : — 

If  we  have  the  truth  it  will  abide  securely  and 
will  win  the  day;  if  not,  happy  shall  we  be  to  lose 
that  which  appears  to  be  what  it  is  not. 

This  is  a  platform  for  a  conference  between 
interested  denominations  that  may  not  be 
reasonably  objected  to  by  any  Christian  who 
sincerely  desires  to  aid  in  bringing  about 
Christian  unity  or  unity  in  Christian  effort. 

The  aim  of  all  religious  organizations  seek-^ 
ing  to  work  together  should  not  be  reunion, 
for  reunion  means  restoring  what  once  ex- 
isted. Great  movements  may  wisely  look 
backward  for  the  guidance  which  experience 
affords  in  showing  what  errors  of  the  past 
should  be  avoided ;  successful  religious  move- 
ments, however,  never  move  backward  but 
always  forward.  There  must  be  union,  not 
reunion,  advance,  not  retreat.  We  should 
hold  all  the  truth  we  each  have;  cheerfully 
give  up  ''that  which  appears  to  be  what  it  is 
not"  The  representatives  of  the  several 
251 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


Cliristian  denominations  should  be  willing,  if 
necessary,  to  labor  and  to  permit  all  others 
to  labor,  each  in  their  own  way,  to  develop 
their  fundamental  and  common  belief  in  God 
and  the  Bible  in  the  form  best  adapted  to  their 
several  needs.  They  must  each  remember  it  is 
entirely  possible  for  others  to  differ  from 
them  as  to  the  meaning  of  words,  forms  and 
ceremonies,  and  yet  be  right.  While  they 
may  not  relax  their  efforts  to  bring  all  the 
world  to  a  belief  in  Christ  and  to  lead  lives 
that  accord  with  his  teaching,  the  effort  must 
be  to  develop  humble  Christians.  This  much 
it  seems  reasonable  to  ask  and  expect ;  noth- 
ing less  than  this  will  satisfy  the  needs  of  a 
successful  unity  in  Christian  effort. 

The  situation  to-day  is  that  there  are  sev- 
eral hundred  sectarian  or  denominational 
varieties  of  professing  Christians,  each  seem- 
ingly more  anxious  to  convert  the  others  than 
to  labor  unitedly  for  the  lessening  of  the  unbe- 
lief and  misery  of  the  world  and  the  attract- 
ing to  the  Christian  standards  of  those  now 
ready  to  "curse  God  and  die."  This  should 
be  changed.  Between  the  Roman  Church  on 
the  one  hand,  representing  the  autocratic 
theory  of  life  and  operating  its  wonderful 
organization  as  a  mammoth  corporation  de- 
252 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


voted  to  uniformity  in  all  things,  with  a 
central  authority  that  dominates  and  sup- 
presses all  individual  initiative;  and  the  ex- 
treme democracy  upon  the  other  hand,  where 
each  individual  claims  to  be  a  law  unto  him- 
self in  matters  religious  as  well  as  secular — 
represented  at  its  worst  by  the  extreme 
socialist  and  the  anarchist — there  is  no  pos- 
sible compromise.  They  cannot  work  in  har- 
mony. The  middle  ground  is  occupied  by  a 
great  mass  of  people  who  believe  they  are 
more  nearly  right  in  their  religious  theories 
but  who  are  still  far  from  conveying  the  high- 
est ideal  of  a  disinterested,  unselfish  "Chris- 
tian unity  in  effort." 

In  summary  it  may  be  said  that  successful 
"Christian  unity  in  effort"  demands: — 

1  A  belief  in  God  and  the  Bible  as  its 
fundamental  faith. 

2  An  organized  method  following  the  high- 
est development  of  successful  secular  effort. 

3  Lives  of  faith  in  action,  demonstrating 
in  love  and  charity  for  all  an  enduring  pur- 
pose to  Christianize  the  entire  world. 

This  chapter  concludes  by  suggesting  for 
consideration  a  method  of  organization  under 
which  it  may  be  found  possible  to  inaugurate 
a  Protestant  "Christian  unity  in  effort." 
253 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 

Invite  each  of  the  seven  important  Protestant 
Christian  denominational  families  in  the 
United  States,  herein  before  referred  to,  to 
appoint  from  its  number  three  ministers,  and 
three  laymen  who  have  been  notable  for  hon- 
orable success  in  the  best  of  the  secular 
organizations,  to  meet  on  the  call  of  those 
signing  a  letter  of  invitation  for  the  confer- 
ence. Ask  this  conference  to  consider  pro- 
curing a  national  charter,  or  uniform 
charters  from  the  several  states,  for  ''The 
American  Christian  Church,"  carefully 
guarding  against  any  possible  thought  of  any 
union  of  Church  and  State  which,  rightly,  is 
foreign  to  our  governmental  theories  and 
should  never  be  permitted.  This  country  is 
and  must  continue  to  be  a  Christian  nation. 

The  purpose  of  The  American  Christian 
Church  might  be  stated  in  its  charter  about 
as  follows: — 

TITLE 

The  name  shall  be  "The  American  Chris- 
tian Church." 

OBJECT 

Its  object  shall  be  to  unite  all  Christians 
in  laboring  to  advance  the  cause  of  their 
Master. 

254 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


MEMBERSHIP 

All  Christian  church  bodies  embracing  in 
their  creed  a  belief  in  God  and  the  Bible  shall 
be  eligible  for  membership. 

GOVERNMENT 

The  members  shall  select  from  their  num- 
ber an  executive  committee  to  act  between 
their  meetings,  and  subject  to  their  review 
and  their  right  of  reversal  of  every  such 
action, 

POWERS 

The  general  powers  shall  be  advisory  but 
may  be  enlarged  and  made  specific,  as  to  any 
one  or  more  churches  by  voluntary  action  of 
said  church  or  churches. 

LOCATION 

The  general  offices  shall  be  in  Washington, 
D.  C. 

TEBM 

The  charter  shall  be  perpetual. 

The  American  Christian  Church  should  seek 
to  secure  simplicity  in  the  statement  of  its 
fundamental  faith.  .  It  should  be  generous 
toward  the  preferences  of  its  members  in  mat- 
255 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


ters  of  detail  to  which  they  attach  special 
importance.  It  should  seek  in  a  right  Chris- 
tian spirit  to  encourage  individual  initiative 
and  intelligent  competition  in  the  etfort  to 
forward  the  cause  of  Christ  throughout  the 
world.  The  important  church  families  may 
find  in  the  "holding  company"  idea  some- 
thing capable  of  being  developed  into  a 
method  of  bringing  the  separated  members 
of  their  respective  families  together,  on  the 
basis  of  their  agreement  in  essentials  instead 
of  allowing  themselves  to  remain  separated 
by  their  far  less  important  differences  as  to 
nonessentials. 

As  a  brief  and  specific  recommendation, 
this  basis  of  "Christian  unity  in  effort"  is 
submitted : — 

1  In  fundamental  faith,  unity. 

2  In  all  relations  toward  mankind,  unifor- 
mity of  purpose.  ' '  Whatsoever  ye  would  that 
men  should  do  to  you,  do  ye  even  so  to  them" 
(Matt.  7:12). 

3  In  interpretation,  in  organization  and 
in  forms  of  worship,  every  liberty  consistent 
with  the  fundamental  faith  and  a  right  relation 
toward  men. 

4  In  all  things: — Sincerity,  humility, 
patience. 

256 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


The  American  Christian  Church  in  our  own 
country  would  find  its  counterpart  in  an  Eng- 
lish Christian  Church  in  England,  a  Japanese 
Christian  Church  in  Japan,  a  Chinese  Chris- 
tian Church  'm  Chiaa,  and  a  similar  church 
in  each  other  country.  Their  adherents 
would  all  be  Christians.  Tliey  would  all 
agree  in  fundamental  faith  and  in  the  pur- 
poses that  should  govern  them  in  their  rela- 
tions toward  their  fellow-men.  The  Chris- 
tian Church  of  a  country  should  not  be  ex- 
pected to  accept  from  any  other  country  its 
local  name  or  its  central  government.  The 
spirit  of  Modernism  now  so  active  in  the 
Roman  Catholic  Church,  and  that  has  been 
defined  as  a  renovating  movement  within 
the  church,  may  ultimately  make  it  possible 
for  that  great  church  to  unite  witli  other 
Christian  churches  in  an  earnest  effort  to 
Christianize  all  of  the  world's  people. 

PRACTICAL  CHURCH  UNITY 

[Reprinted  by  penni&sioii  from  The  Outlook,  December  12, 1908.J 

There  are  many  summer  and  winter  resorts 
in  this  country  where  it  has  been  found  pos- 
sible to  carrj'  on  united  church  services  with 
satisfaction  and  benefit  to  all  concerned. 
Such  instances  are  worthy  of  thoughtful  con- 
17  257 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


sideration,  as  many  of  them  illustrate  what 
is  easily  possible  in  the  way  of  a  practical 
church  unity,  or  unity  in  Christian  worship 
and  effort.  It  is  the  purpose  of  this  article 
to  describe  the  useful  united  services  held  at 
one  of  these  places  on  the  Sundays  of  July 
to  September,  both  inclusive. 

On  a  hillside,  surrounded  by  forest  trees 
and  about  seventy-five  feet  above  the  waters 
of  one  of  the  most  beautiful  of  the  Adiron- 
dack lakes,  stands  a  small  log  church.  It 
has  been  described  by  the  minister  in  charge 
as  in  the  best  sense  of  the  term  a  union 
church  or  chapel. 

The  original  building  was  erected  more 
than  twenty  years  ago,  and  it  has  since  been 
enlarged  so  as  to  increase  its  seating  capacity 
about  two-thirds,  thus  making  room  for  about 
two  hundred  people. 

The  church  building  stands  on  ground 
owned  by  a  near-by  inn,  and  it  is  leased  at  a 
nominal  rate  to  an  association  entitled  "The 
Church  Committee."  The  important  pro- 
visions of  the  by-laws  governing  this  church 
committee  are  as  follows : 

The  Committee  shall  be  known  as  "  The  Church 
Committee." 
Every  man  who  is  a  property-owner,  tenant  of  a 
258 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


camp  or  cottage,  or  a  guest  at  the  Inn,  and  an 
attendant  upon  the  church  services,  shall  be  eligible 
for  membership  in  the  Committee. 

The  Committee  shall  be  non-sectarian  and  shall 
undertake  the  care  and  custody  of  the  Church  prop- 
erty and  determine  the  character,  conduct,  and 
term  of  the  church  services. 

An  Executive  Committee  of  five  shall  decide  who, 
in  addition  to  the  parties  originally  uniting  to 
form  the  Committee,  shall  be  admitted  to  member- 
ship, requiring  that  they  shall  be  eligible  as  afore- 
said. 

The  Executive  Committee  shall  carry  out  all  in- 
structions given  by  the  General  Committee,  and 
shall  act  with  the  power  of  said  Committee  between 
meetings. 

It  shall  report  to  the  General  Committee  at  each 
annual  meeting  and  otherwise  as  it  may  deem  best 
or  as  the  General  Committee  shall  require. 

The  Church  Committee  is  composed  of  men 
of  all  branches  of  the  Christian  family.  The 
little  church  is  recognized  as  a  home  for  all 
Christians,  each  respecting  all  others  who 
seek  to  have  a  right  faith  (as  it  is  given  them 
to  sincerely  believe)  and  to  lead  a  right  life. 
The  Church  Committee  chooses  its  minister 
each  season  and  thus  avoids  the  risk  of  con- 
tinuing a  connection  after  such  connection 
has  ceased  to  be  useful. 

It  has  been  fortunate  in  securing  for  eleven 
seasons  a  minister  who  has  been  acceptable 
259 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


to  all,  and  for  whom  there  is  a  universal  feel- 
ing of  affectionate  regard  and  esteem. 

He  is  a  minister  of  the  Protestant  Episco- 
pal Church,  and  uses  a  simple  form  of  service 
from  the  prayer  book  of  his  church.  On  the 
first  and  last  Sunday  of  each  season  and  on 
the  first  Sunday  of  each  month  the  Holy  Com- 
munion is  administered.  The  invitation  ex- 
tended by  the  minister  on  these  occasions  is 
so  evidently  sincere  and  heartfelt  that  Chris- 
tians do  not  feel  called  upon  to  have  in  mind 
any  denominational  preferences,  but  find 
themselves  able  to  kneel  together  as  members 
of  one  family,  and  unite  in  what  is  recognized 
by  all  of  the  various  branches  of  the  Christian 
Church  to  be  one  of  the  most  solemn  of  all 
religious  observances. 

Ministers  as  well  as  lay  members  of  vari- 
ous branches  of  the  Christian  family  com- 
mune together  in  peaceful  harmony.  On  one 
occasion  a  minister  of  a  Congregational 
church,  a  stranger,  was  present  at  a  Sunday 
morning  service  and  united  in  communion  at 
its  close.  He  said,  as  he  left  the  church,  "I 
have  done  to-day  what  I  never  did  before 
in  my  life,  but  I  simply  could  not  stay  away 
from  the  communion  table  after  hearing  that 
touching  invitation. ' ' 

260 


DEEDS— FAITH  IN  ACTION 


The  minister  receives  a  regular  salary  and 
the  use  of  a  comfortable  rectory.  The  ex- 
penses of  every  sort  are  met  by  the  voluntary'- 
offerings  made  at  the  Sunday  morning  serv- 
ices.   There  has  never  yet  been  a  deficit. 

When  the  church  building  was  enlarged, 
the  cost  of  the  work  was  fully  met  by  contri- 
butions promptly  made  in  response  to  a 
simple  notice  at  a  Sunday  morning  service 
that  the  work  was  to  be  done  and  that  the 
money  was  needed.  The  Church  Committee 
tenders  the  free  use  of  the  chapel  to  the 
Koman  Catholic  priest  on  duty  in  the  district 
for  an  early  service  for  persons  of  that  faith, 
and  this  service  is  held  at  six  o'clock  each 
Sunday  morning. 

On  Sunday  evenings  a  united  service  of 
song  is  held  in  the  Guide  House  for  the 
guides,  maids,  and  employees,  care  being 
taken  to  make  the  character  of  this  service 
entirely  unobjectionable  to  every  one,  no  mat- 
ter what  his  or  her  church  connection  may  be. 

Wliile  the  regular  morning  church  services 
are  conducted  by  an  Episcopal  minister,  and 
conform  to  the  simplest  Prayer-Book  provis- 
ions, it  is  always  in  order  for  the  minister 
and  Executive  Committee  jointly  to  decide  to 
extend  an  invitation  to  any  minister  of  any 
2G1 


FAITHS,  CREEDS,  DEEDS 


Christian  denomination  to  preach  at  any 
service.  This  has  seldom  been  done,  but  has 
never  resulted  objectionably  in  any  way.  It 
is  the  rule  and  not  the  exception  that  the 
regular  Sunday  morning  service  is  attended 
by  the  guests  at  the  Inn  and  by  the  occupants 
of  all  adjacent  cottages  and  camps,  as  well 
as  by  guides,  maids,  and  employees  from  inns, 
cottages,  and  camps.  Young  men  have  said 
that  while  they  rarely  go  to  any  church  at 
home,  they  do  not  want  to  miss  any  of  these 
simple  and  sincere  united  services. 

Here,  then,  we  have  illustrated  a  form  of 
practical  Church  Unity,  or  of  Unity  in  Chris- 
tian worship  and  effort,  that  appears  to  be 
worthy  of  careful  thought  on  the  part  of  those 
who  are  seeking  a  similar  result  in  the  wider 
fields  that  the  world  offers. 

The  simple  and  sincere  union  services  that 
are  in  practical  use,  as  this  article  describes, 
have  been  found  to  make  church-going  attrac- 
tive; to  bring  all  Christians  closely  together 
in  harmony ;  to  make  it  possible  for  them  all 
to  worship  and  commune  as  one  family ;  and, 
last  but  not  least,  to  bring  voluntary  contribu- 
tions into  the  church  treasuiy,  making  its 
care  a  pleasure  and  not  a  burden. 

Frank  J.  Firth. 

Philadelphia. 

262 


REFLECTIVE 


REFLECTIVE 


r 

CHAPTER  XIII 

AFTER  DEATH— WHAT  THEN? 

You  have  experienced  the  faith,  have  given 
it  expression  in  words  and  have  striven  to 
lead  a  life  of  action  that  should  have  prac- 
tically illustrated  what  you  sincerely  believe. 
Your  life's  work  is  nearing  its  end.  What 
then?  Those  near  and  dear  to  you  are  hur- 
riedly called  to  your  bedside  and  arrive  just 
in  time  for  a  last  clasp  of  the  hand,  a  last 
look  of  recognition,  and  then  your  soul  passes 
away,  leaving  your  body  instinct  with  animal 
life  only.  Lines  of  pain  are  still  seen  on  your 
face ;  convulsive  movements  of  your  arms  and 
limbs  express  pain  and  discomfort  and  the 
end  comes.  Life,  that  mysterious  bond  of 
union  between  soul  and  body,  departs.  ''Now 
the  laborer's  task  is  o'er."  An  inanimate 
form  alone  remains.  Death  has  claimed  its 
own. 

265 


REFLECTIVE 


Do  you  ask  what  becomes  of  the  natural 
body,  of  the  principle  of  life,  of  the  soul? 

You  know  this  much  as  to  the  natural 
body : — 

A  few  days  after  death  will  come  the 
funeral  services  and  the  burial.  Your  fleshly 
body  will  then  be  subject  to  the  natural 
process  of  decay  and  in  a  few  years  no  part 
of  it  will  remain,  except,  perhaps,  a  few  odd 
bones  or  pieces  of  bones,  and  in  time  they,  too, 
will  disappear,  returned  to  the  elements  from 
which  they  came.  This  is  equally  the  result 
should  the  body  be  cremated,  destroyed  by  the 
accidents  of  fire  or  sea  or  by  other  cause. 

So  much  and  no  more  is  known  in  answer  to 
the  inquiry  as  to  what  becomes  of  your  fleshly 
or  natural  body  after  death.  * '  Dust  thou  art, 
and  unto  dust  shalt  thou  return"  was  the  law 
established  by  the  Lord  in  the  garden  of 
Eden,  and  it  is  still  with  us. 

With  this  knowledge,  is  it  reasonable  to 
suppose  that  your  identical  fleshly  body  will 
be  raised  again  on  the  resurrection  day  and 
that  just  as  you  were  at  death  so  will  you 
be  when  you  enter  upon  the  life  everlasting? 
That  this  is  within  the  miraculous  and  mys- 
terious power  of  God,  no  believer  in  him  will 
seriously  question.  But  is  it  a  reasonable  or 
266 


AFTER  DEATH— WHAT  THEN? 


encouraging  belief  that  he  will  so  exercise  this 
power?  Think  of  it!  Aged  and  suffering 
friend,  racked  with  pain  and  worn,  so  that 
death  is  a  mercy,  do  you  want  to  enter  upon 
an  everlasting  life  with  the  body  you  inhabit 
here?  Lame,  halt,  deaf  and  blind,  sufferers 
of  every  sort,  do  you  expect  a  merciful  God 
will  doom  you  to  everlasting  life  in  the  bodies 
that  have  brought  you  only  suffering  here? 
Do  you  believe  it,  or  desire  to  believe  it?  Is 
it  not  more  reasonable  and  comforting  to  be- 
lieve that  our  natural  body,  with  its  inherent 
temptations  and  demands  upon  us,  will  not 
be  our  habitation  in  the  world  to  come?  May 
we  not  reverently  recognize  that  this  body, 
created  by  the  Lord,  when  laid  in  the  grave 
or  otherwise  resolved  into  its  elements,  has 
finished  the  work  he  gave  it  to  do  and  will 
forever  rest  from  its  labors? 

And  what,  you  ask,  becomes  of  the  principle 
of  life,  that  mysterious  ''breath  of  God" 
forming  the  bond  of  union  between  soul  and 
body,  preserving  the  body  from  decay  until 
its  appointed  time? 

Life  is  the  common  possession  of  man  and 
of  all  other  animals.  Is  its  work  done  when 
God's  law  brings  in  due  course  the  separation 
of  the  soul  from  the  body?  Will  it  thereafter 
267 


REFLECTIVE 


rest  from  its  labors,  as  does  the  body  it 
served?  Does  not  this  appear  at  least  prob- 
able?  We  do  not  know. 

And  finally,  you  ask,  what  of  the  soul? 
**And  the  Lord  God  formed  man  of  the  dust 
of  the  ground,  and  breathed  into  his  nostrils 
the  breath  of  life;  and  man  became  a  living 
soul"  (Gen.  2:7). 

First,  the  fleshly  body;  dust  of  the  ground 
that  shall  to  dust  return. 

Second,  the  principle  of  life,  the  breath  of 
life,  God's  breath:  the  mysterious  bond  of 
union  between  body  and  soul  in  the  perfected 
human  creature. 

Third,  the  living  soul — no  word  of  what  it  is 
or  where  it  came  from ;  only  that  it  followed 
the  union  of  the  body  of  dust  with  the  breath 
of  God. 

The  soul  is  that  part  of  us  we  think  of  as  a 
mysterious  something  immortal,  never  to  die; 
a  something  that  will  never  end ;  possessed  of 
some  of  the  attributes  of  God  himself ;  perhaps 
that  kingdom  of  God  which  we  are  told  is 
within  us.  We  are  told  that  "there  is  a 
natural  body,  and  there  is  a  spiritual  body" 
(I  Cor.  15 : 44).  The  soul  we  think  of  as  this 
spiritual  body.  Where  it  goes  when  it  de- 
parts from  the  natural  body  we  are  not  told ; 
268 


AFTER  DEATH— WHAT  THEN? 

we  do  not  know.  Theories  there  are,  more 
or  less  reasonable,  but  no  exact  knowledge. 
One  theory  is  that  the  soul  passes  from  this 
world  into  an  intermediate  state  where  there 
is  to  be  preaching  and  where,  until  a  distant 
judgment  day,  opportunity  will  be  given  sin- 
ners to  repent  of  their  wrongdoings  when  in 
this  world,  and  be  forgiven.  Think  of  it! 
A  soul,  after  inhabiting  a  body  on  this  earth 
for  a  few  short  years,  passes  into  an  inter- 
mediate state  (Hades)  where  it  may  remain 
thousands,  tens  of  thousands,  millions  of 
years,  until  an  unknown  judgment  day. 
After  all  this  incomprehensible  period  of 
time,  the  great  and  merciful  God  is  supposed 
to  call  the  millions  of  millions  of  souls  before 
him,  to  judge  and  punish  or  reward  each  one 
of  them  in  accordance  with  the  deeds  done  in 
flesh  during  the  few  years  passed  upon  this 
earth!  Does  that  seem  to  be  a  reasonable 
theory  or  a  comfortable  one!  The  future 
existence  is  all  a  region  of  mystery,  theory, 
lack  of  accurate  knowledge.  May  it  be  pos- 
sible that  while  our  natural,  fleshly  bodies  are 
subject  to  constant  change  and  to  final  decay, 
and  while  they  may  have  distinct  and  k-nown 
times  of  beginning  and  ending,  our  immortal 
souls — Godlike — never  change?  May  it  be 
269 


REFLECTIVE 


possible  that  these  immortal  souls,  spiritual 
bodies,  are,  always  have  and  always  will  be 
in  constant  contact  with  all  other  immortal 
souls,  a  contact  of  which  our  natural,  fleshly 
bodies  are  not  and  cannot  be  conscious  be- 
cause of  their  limitations'?  Such  a  theory 
would  insure  recognition  after  death,  a  most 
comforting  possibility  to  all  those  who  sor- 
row. It  would  mean  that  the  soul,  on  leaving 
the  fleshly  body,  would  continue  in  compan- 
ionship with  other  immortal  souls,  not  as 
strangers  but  as  old,  tried  friends.  It  would 
solve  some  of  the  difficulties  now  presented 
by  the  passing  years  on  earth,  with  the  many 
changes  they  bring  to  the  flesh — changes  mak- 
ing anything  like  unaided  earthly  recognition 
beyond  the  region  of  hope.  It  is  not  clear 
how  it  would  solve  the  mysteries  of  a  judg- 
ment day. 

''There  is  a  natural  body,  and  there  is  a 
spiritual  body."  Is  it  not  possible  to  con- 
ceive of  a  spiritual  body,  possessing  at  all 
times  and  under  all  conditions,  an  individual- 
ity that  insures  the  certainty  of  a  friendly 
recognition  in  the  world  to  come?  Can  any- 
one conceive  of  an  immortal  soul,  a  spiritual 
body,  clad  in  such  garments  as  art  employs 
when  striving  to  enter  the  spirit  world? 
270 


AFTER  DEATH— WHAT  THEN? 


What  can  anyone  expect  to  see  in  the  next 
world  who  believes  in  the  resurrection  of 
our  fleshly,  natural  bodies?  The  well-nigh 
universal  belief  of  men  that  there  is  a  future 
state  in  which  there  shall  be  recognition  of 
those  we  have  known  and  loved  on  earth,  ap- 
pears to  rest  wholly  upon  instinct,  as  there  is 
not  any  clear  and  definite  information  con- 
tained in  the  Bible  upon  which  such  a  belief 
may  find  a  sure  resting  place. 

Among  the  Bible  evidences  often  cited  as 
authorizing  a  belief  in  recognition  after  death 
is  that  of  the  Transfiguration  of  Christ  and 
the  apparent  recognition,  by  Peter,  of  Moses 
and  Elias.  This  scene  is  recorded  in  Matt. 
17 : 1-13 ;  Mark  9:2-5;  Luke  9 :  29-33.  The 
account  in  Mark  represents  Peter  as  *'sore 
afraid"  and  says  "for  he  wist  not  what  to 
say" ;  in  Luke  that  "Peter  and  they  that  were 
with  him  were  heavy  with  sleep;  and  when 
they  were  awake,  they  saw  his  glory,  and  the 
two  men  that  stood  with  him";  then,  after 
Peter's  request  to  be  allowed  to  "make  three 
tabernacles,"  comes  the  significant  remark, 
"not  knowing  what  he  said."  Does  not  this 
suggest  a  dream  or  vision  of  one  heavy  with 
sleep  rather  than  an  account  of  an  actual 
seeing  of  the  spiritual  bodies  of  Moses  and 
271 


REFLECTIVE 


Elias  and,  by  some  inconceivable  power,  a 
recognition  of  them  by  Peter  as  men  are 
recognized  while  on  earth?  There  appears  to 
be  very  little  in  the  Bible  record  that  bears 
clearly  and  directly  upon  this  intensely  inter- 
esting question  of  recognition  after  death. 
We  are  left  largely  to  our  natural  instinct  for 
the  comforting  belief  that  in  some  way,  not 
now  comprehended  by  us,  there  will  be  such 
recognition. 

Another  interesting  question  as  to  which 
the  Bible  gives  no  definite  information  is 
whether  the  souls  or  spiritual  bodies  of  all 
men  are  immortal,  or  whether  only  such  of 
them  as  may  be  elected  or  selected  by  the 
Creator  shall  enter  upon  the  life  everlasting. 
Does  it  not  appear  possible  that  there  may  be 
some  human  beings  who  are  not  destined  to 
an  immortal  life,  when  we  consider  how  many 
men  and  women,  either  through  or  without 
fault  of  their  own,  seem  to  be  but  a  shade 
if  at  all  above  the  brute  creation?  In  the 
image  of  man  and  therefore  of  God  the  re- 
semblance appears  to  end.  Has  each  of  them 
an  immortal  soul  holding  a  promise  from  the 
Creator  that  it  shall  inherit  a  life  everlasting, 
whether  of  happiness  or  suffering?  Where 
is  any  such  promise  recorded  as  to  every 
272 


AFTER  DEATH— WIL\T  THEN? 


human  being?  It  can  scarcely  be  dispnted 
that  the  Creator  has  the  power  to  make  a 
selection  if  he  so  wills  and  permanently  end 
the  term  of  existence  of  some  souls  while 
others  may  be  chosen  to  enter  upon  a  life 
everlasting.  All  this  relation  of  the  soul  to 
the  life  immortal  is  relegated  to  the  region 
of  profound  and  unsolvable  mystery.  We 
may  theorize,  guess,  allow  ourselves  to  have 
opinions,  but  in  this  world  we  will,  in  all 
human  probability,  never  have  any  definite 
knowledge. 

In  answer  to  a  question  about  life  after 
death,  Confucius  is  said  to  have  replied, 
""Wliile  you  do  not  know  life,  how  do  you 
know  about  death?"  Life,  it  is  said,  was 
his  study,  and  he  represented  man  only  as  he 
actually  exists.  We  may  reverently  thank 
God  for  a  higher  knowledge  than  that  of  Con- 
fucius, and  we  may  reverently  and  patiently 
seek  further,  but  we  may  not  assert  our  petty 
theories  as  certainties  in  a  region  that  God 
has  apparently  decreed  must  remain  one  of 
mystery  while  this  life  lasts.  We  must  wait 
in  humility  and  faith  until  this  life  ends,  and 
perhaps  we  shall  then  have  revealed  to  us 
what  it  would  appear  must  else  remain  for- 
ever unknown. 


